sitcom
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of sitcom
First recorded in 1960–65; by shortening
Explanation
Sitcom is short for “situation comedy.” It’s a funny TV show with a realistic setting, like an apartment full of wacky roommates or a restaurant where a regular cast of characters cracks jokes from week to week. Sitcoms have been around since people began rolling their eyes at laugh tracks. I Love Lucy (1950’s) was an early sitcom; it was one that featured a married couple who had zany misunderstandings. On 30 Rock (2000’s), the situation was a bunch of oddballs in their office making a TV show. On Barney Miller, (1970’s) the situation was a normal police captain surrounded by weird coworkers. The basic elements of a sitcom stay the same from week to week.
Vocabulary lists containing sitcom
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Bob Newhart (1929–2024) Tribute List
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Meanwhile, Ava rises to captain her own sitcom ship, commanding this one with joy and gratitude, having learned that fear is antithetical to producing one’s best work.
From Salon • May 29, 2026
The sitcom, which followed the lives of six New Yorkers navigating adulthood, dating and careers, drew a massive following and made megastars of previously unknown actors.
From Barron's • May 27, 2026
Many years later, after I moved to Los Angeles, my role on “The Ellen Show” sitcom introduced me to a much wider audience.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026
Lately, she’s making a feast of roles that all remind me of that old sitcom episode in which Lucille Ball gobbles chocolates on a conveyor belt.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
In the late 1960s, the screenwriter Norman Lear produced a television sitcom pilot for a show called All in the Family.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
