genre

American  

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

noun

plural

genres

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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Etymology

Origin of genre

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

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

Genre fiction traffics in extremes that make certain scenarios seem impossible.

From Salon • Jul. 21, 2024

Country music has never been immune to the nation’s social and political forces, says Amanda Marie Martinez, author of the upcoming “Gone Country: How Nashville Transformed a Music Genre into a Lifestyle Brand.”

From Seattle Times • Feb. 9, 2024

Sabbagh’s work is included in an exhibition uptown, at Columbia University’s Wallach Art Gallery, titled “Partisans of the Nude: An Arab Art Genre in an Era of Contest, 1920-1960.”

From New York Times • Dec. 14, 2023

"Genre is a kind of virtual community - even before the online age, right?"

From BBC • Nov. 28, 2023

Genre pictures, plots of novels, incidents of plays—they are all rather elementary things.

From At Large by Benson, Arthur Christopher

Related Words

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