climax
noun
the highest point of anything conceived of as growing or developing or unfolding
“the climax of the artist's career”
“in the flood tide of his success”
Synonymsflood tidethe decisive moment in a novel or play
“the deathbed scene is the climax of the play”
Synonymsculminationthe moment of most intense pleasure in sexual intercourse
the most severe stage of a disease
arrangement of clauses in ascending order of forcefulness
verb
end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage
“The meeting culminated in a tearful embrace”
Synonymsculminate
Source: WordNet 3.1, Princeton University