genre

American  

[zhahn-ruh, zhahn-r^uh] / ˈʒɑn rə, ˈʒɑ̃ rə /

noun

• genres
  plural

1. a class or category of artistic endeavor having a particular form, content, technique, or the like.

   the genre of epic poetry; the genre of symphonic music.

2. Fine Arts.

   1. paintings in which scenes of everyday life form the subject matter.

   2. a realistic style of painting using such subject matter.

3. genus; kind; sort; style.

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adjective

1. Fine Arts. of or relating to genre.

2. of or relating to a distinctive literary type.

genre British  

/ ˈʒɑːnrə /

noun

1. 1. kind, category, or sort, esp of literary or artistic work

   2. ( as modifier )

      genre fiction

2. a category of painting in which domestic scenes or incidents from everyday life are depicted

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genre Cultural  

1. The kind or type of a work of art, from the French, meaning “kind” or “genus.” Literary genres include the novel and the sonnet. Musical genres include the concerto and the symphony. Film genres include Westerns and horror movies.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• genres
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of genre

First recorded in 1760–70; from French: “kind, sort”; see gender ¹

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Explanation

A genre is a specific type of music, film, or writing. Your favorite literary genre might be science fiction, and your favorite film genre might be horror flicks about cheerleaders. Go figure. In music, genre refers to musical style such as jazz, salsa or rock. In film or literature, the genre is determined by the subject, setting or plot of the story. When you are wandering around a book store, books are usually arranged by genre. Many genres, such as "mystery" or "fantasy," overlap in film and literature, while others, such as "romantic comedy" in film or "historical fiction" in books, are specific to one or the other.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

genre genres

Created by Robert and Michelle King, veterans of the legal drama genre with shows like “The Good Wife” and its spinoff “The Good Fight,” the Silicon Valley-set courtroom drama is interested in David vs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

From the greatest genre series to less obvious links, like the preposterous shenanigans at Paddy’s Pub, Serling left his mark on screens large and small, and on American audiences.

From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2026

The Afrobeats genre, which originates from West Africa, has massively grown in recent years - dominating playlists and seeing artists, including Starr, featuring at major festivals such as Glastonbury.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

Sallis, who died in January, was no ordinary genre author.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

“So, do you have an idea of what genre of film we should make?”

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

Yet it used the genres of supernatural fantasy and science fiction to examine reality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The creator of “The Twilight Zone” used the genres of supernatural fantasy and science fiction to address social issues that other programs avoided.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

"Afrobeats just keeps evolving, it keeps growing and it just keeps getting better... I want it to be one of the top genres in the world."

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

But still, the exhibition is the rare chance to view RM as a serious art collector; someone who values Korean identity in art but also loves works from many genres, eras and countries.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026

These forms came to have enormous influence on twentieth-century music, first in the Americas and then in time around the world, through popular music of countless genres.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

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Related Words

• brand
• category
• character
• fashion
• kind
• style

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