结局(jié jú) - ending, outcome, conclusion in Mandarin

结局 (jié jú) is how something turns out at the end, above all in a narrative. Stories, novels, films and television series all have a 结局, and so do lives and long-running affairs. 大团圆结局 is the happy ending, 悲惨的结局 the tragic one.

It is a pure noun and normally hangs off a possessor with 的: 故事的结局, 他的结局. You can also say 结局是 followed by a clause, which is the standard way to report how something ended.

The trap is the three 结 words. 结束 is the verb to end, so a film 结束了 but never 结局了. 结果 is the result of an action or a calculation, the consequence side of things. 结局 is the shape of the ending as a piece of narrative. Say 考试的结果 for exam results and 电影的结局 for the ending of the film, and swapping them will sound wrong even when the meaning survives.