broadcast

American  

[brawd-kast, -kahst] / ˈbrɔdˌkæst, -ˌkɑst /

verb (used with object)

• broadcasts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• broadcast,
  past participle,  past
• broadcasted,
  past participle,  past
• broadcasting
  present participle

1. to transmit (programs) from a radio or television station.

2. to speak, perform, sponsor, or present on a radio or television program.

   The president will broadcast his message on all stations tonight.

3. to cast or scatter abroad over an area, as seed in sowing.

4. to spread widely; disseminate.

   She broadcast the good news all over town.

5. to indicate unwittingly to another (one's next action); telegraph.

   He broadcast his punch and the other man was able to parry it.

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verb (used without object)

• broadcasts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• broadcast,
  past participle,  past
• broadcasted,
  past participle,  past
• broadcasting
  present participle

1. to transmit programs or signals from a radio or television station.

2. to make something known widely; disseminate something.

3. to speak, perform, sponsor, or present all or part of a radio or television program.

   The Boston Symphony Orchestra broadcasts every Saturday on our local station.

noun

• broadcasts
  plural

1. something that is broadcast.

2. a single radio or television program.

3. the broadcasting of radio or television messages, speeches, etc.

4. a single period of broadcasting

5. a method of sowing by scattering seed.

adjective

1. (of programs) transmitted from a radio or television station.

2. of or relating to broadcasting.

3. cast abroad or all over an area, as seed scattered widely.

adverb

1. so as to reach the greatest number of people by radio or television.

   The vital news was sent broadcast to inform the entire nation.

2. so as to be cast abroad over an area.

   seed sown broadcast.

broadcast British  

/ ˈbrɔːdˌkɑːst /

verb

1. to transmit (announcements or programmes) on radio or television

2. (intr) to take part in a radio or television programme

3. (tr) to make widely known throughout an area

   to broadcast news

4. (tr) to scatter (seed, etc) over an area, esp by hand

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noun

1. 1. a transmission or programme on radio or television

   2. ( as modifier )

      a broadcast signal

2. 1. the act of scattering seeds

   2. ( as modifier )

      the broadcast method of sowing

adjective

1. dispersed over a wide area

   broadcast seeds

adverb

1. far and wide

   seeds to be sown broadcast

Usage

What does broadcast mean? Broadcast means to transmit a television or radio program, as in The network broadcasted cartoons every Saturday morning. In this sense a broadcast can be a single TV or radio program, as in the 6 o’clock news broadcast. Broadcast also means to deliver a message on a transmitted program, as in The police broadcasted the press release on the evening news. More generally, broadcast means to spread something widely, as in She broadcasted her recent wedding engagement to all of her family members. Related to this sense, a broadcast can be news or something similar that you share widely, like your broadcast to your classmates about the A you got on the test. Broadcast also means to mistakenly make a next move obvious, as in The boxer broadcasted his punch with a flashy windup. Example: Coverage of the awards ceremony was the leading story on every news broadcast. 

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• broadcaster
  noun
• broadcasting
  noun
• unbroadcasted
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• broadcasts
  plural

Participles

• broadcasting
  present
• broadcast
  past
• broadcasted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• broadcast
  simple
• broadcasts
  simple
• have broadcast
  perfect
• have broadcasted
  perfect
• has broadcast
  perfect
• has broadcasted
  perfect
• am broadcasting
  progressive
• are broadcasting
  progressive
• is broadcasting
  progressive
• have been broadcasting
  perfect progressive
• has been broadcasting
  perfect progressive

Past

• broadcast
  simple
• broadcasted
  simple
• had broadcast
  perfect
• had broadcasted
  perfect
• was broadcasting
  progressive
• were broadcasting
  progressive
• had been broadcasting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will broadcast
  simple
• will have broadcast
  perfect
• will have broadcasted
  perfect
• will be broadcasting
  progressive
• will have been broadcasting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of broadcast

First recorded in 1760–70; originally, broad (adverb) + cast, past participle of cast ( def. )

Explanation

To broadcast is to air a program, especially on TV or radio. It also means to tell people about something. If you paint your one true love’s name on your car, you broadcast your feelings to the whole world! The word broadcast used to have to do with spreading seed, but now it refers to spreading information. It can be a noun or verb — if you turn on the radio, you're hearing a broadcast, and the station is broadcasting that show. You don’t have to be in a studio to broadcast, though. Any time you let a lot of people know about something (whether they like it or not), you broadcast. When information is broadcast, it becomes widely known.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

broadcast broadcasts broadcasted broadcasting

In the broadcast booth, he sometimes alternates between standing and sitting, or puts his feet up on a table, anything to avoid sitting for hours on end.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

Images broadcast on Indonesian television showed hundreds of people in nearby Nagekeo regency evacuating the area from among the rubble of damaged buildings.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

"It broadcast messages to a large area - potentially a whole building - but even nationwide, and anybody can receive it as long as they're on the right frequency," added Arnaboldi.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

In the case of the FTC and FCC, we will have issues enforcing competitive rules and licensing for different broadcast stations.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

The agent remained throughout the broadcast but did not reveal his true identity.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Nine of the 10 sections in the state leave it up to schools to decide regular-season broadcasts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Telling a federal judge the same kind of thing carries the threat of disbarment and perjury charges, and no amount of bravado previously reserved for on-air broadcasts could change that math.

From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026

For the first generation of South Asian migrants to the UK, dedicated radio and television broadcasts by the BBC were a lifeline.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

The target of the Danish group's wrath is an advertising campaign that was "aired during recent, widely viewed global sporting broadcasts and on TikTok and Facebook, causing widespread confusion," it said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

While in China, Park listened daily to radio broadcasts from South Korea.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden

It’s hard to call it media because it’s not mass broadcasted, but this is content that is being consumed.

From Slate ● Mar. 22, 2026

She also broadcasted messages from servicemen and women in England to their friends and families in the Caribbean, in her popular weekly series: Calling the West Indies.

From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2024

The short film was first broadcasted on BBC One on March 24, 2017 as part of Red Nose Day.

From Salon ● Nov. 16, 2023

Videos on social media show crowds scrambling for the exits after officials broadcasted an emergency signal over the fair’s loudspeakers.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 15, 2023

He, fortunately, understood English, recognized the discourse as that which Shaw had broadcasted the previous evening, realized the significance of what had happened, and sent a letter to the medical press about it.

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

This summer, it began broadcasting the name Ruby, assuming the identity of a vessel scrapped in 2018 in an apparent effort to keep operating under the radar, Douglas said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Journalists broadcasting live on news channel Caracol Radio described the furniture shaking in their studio in Bogotá.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

When I visited Piker’s Twitch profile on election night, I wasn’t surprised to find him broadcasting live from El-Sayed’s reception.

From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026

Britain's culture minister Lisa Nandy, meanwhile, opted not to intervene in the merger, saying she had secured "assurances and further legally-binding commitments" to ensure a diverse range of broadcasting and on-demand services in the country.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

By then, many spy rings were broadcasting again, but they were using new codes.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

Related Words

• advertise
• announce
• blare
• circulate
• communicate
• declare
• disseminate
• distribute
• publish
• spread