How to Use defining moment in a Sentence

defining moment

noun
  • That was the defining moment for me.
    — Leigh Blickley, Entertainment Weekly, 3 June 2026
  • The world is at a defining moment in the fight against malaria.
    — Peter Sands, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023
  • San Diego now faces a defining moment.
    — Michael Brunker, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 May 2026
  • This could bring a defining moment with a partner, client or lover.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 19 Jan. 2026
  • There was a defining moment behind it.
    — Billboard Japan, Billboard, 22 Jan. 2026
  • This will be a career defining moment.
    — ABC News, 19 Apr. 2026
  • The act would become the defining moment of her career.
    — Clare Malone, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
  • That will be a really defining moment for me.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
  • But his defining moment came with Machinet.
    — Wyles Daniel, USA Today, 19 Jan. 2026
  • Brittany reunites with her sister and shares how this defining moment changed her life.
    — Kate Aurthur, Variety, 17 Jan. 2025
  • Yes, the leverage penalty on the game’s final play stood as the defining moment.
    — The Athletic Nfl Staff, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Not when the collapse becomes the defining moment.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 May 2026
  • For the Food-as-Medicine movement, this is a defining moment.
    — Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 30 May 2026
  • But Arizona’s defining moment might be the absence of one.
    — Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2026
  • Reflecting on the show’s run, White couldn’t choose just one defining moment.
    — Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 29 June 2026
  • Yet neither team's star has lived up to the expectations and had a defining moment.
    — David Hellier, Bloomberg.com, 14 June 2024
  • This could mean that a defining moment in the biggest club game of the season might swing the tide in the favour of that player.
    — Joseph O'Sullivan, Forbes.com, 27 May 2025
  • His indiscretion did not have to be a defining moment, Coles told him.
    — Dan Pompei, New York Times, 2 Dec. 2025
  • This is a defining moment in our nation's history.
    — Dan Gooding, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025
  • That's how the Queen regarded it; that was the central defining moment of her life.
    — Michael Stillwell, Town & Country, 5 Apr. 2023
  • Swift’s new project marks yet another career-defining moment.
    — Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 5 Oct. 2025
  • Beyond the legal battle, this is a defining moment for creatives.
    — Juan Carlos Santiago, Forbes.com, 21 May 2025
  • Baltimore stands at a defining moment.
    — Alvin C. Hathaway Sr, Baltimore Sun, 22 Feb. 2026
  • And then of course, afternoon tea is such a defining moment on a Cunard voyage.
    — Laurie Brookins, Travel + Leisure, 1 May 2026
  • This atrocity was a defining moment for America and your pain and shock were felt around the whole world.
    — Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
  • Still, Kercher's murder remains the defining moment of Knox's life.
    — Npr Staff, NPR, 29 Mar. 2025
  • For the global girl group, the Gap commercial was a defining moment in their careers.
    — Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 6 Jan. 2026
  • This is a defining moment in the history of the Middle East.
    — FOXNews.com, 7 Apr. 2026
  • Preparation was key for her career-defining moment.
    — Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 3 Sep. 2019
  • When the ball landed in the right-field arcade, Eldridge had the defining moment of his young career.
    — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 10 June 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defining moment.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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