subtitle

American  

[suhb-tahyt-l] / ˈsʌbˌtaɪt l /

noun

• subtitles
  plural

1. a secondary or subordinate title of a literary work, usually of explanatory character.

2. a repetition of the leading words in the full title of a book at the head of the first page of text.

3. Movies, Television, Digital Technology.

   1. a translation or transcription of spoken language in a television program, film, video, or video game, as of dialogue in a foreign language or speech that is audible but may not be easily understood, displayed as a graphic overlay on the lower part of the screen.

   2. caption.

   3. (in silent films) an intertitle or caption.

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verb (used with object)

• subtitles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• subtitled,
  past participle,  past
• subtitling
  present participle

1. to supply a subtitle or subtitles for.

subtitle British  

/ ˈsʌbˌtaɪtəl, -ˈtɪtʃə-, sʌbˈtɪtjʊlə /

noun

1. an additional subordinate title given to a literary or other work

2. Also called: caption.  (often plural) films

   1. a written translation superimposed on a film that has foreign dialogue

   2. explanatory text on a silent film

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verb

1. (tr; usually passive) to provide a subtitle for

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subtitular
  adjective
• unsubtitled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• subtitles
  plural

Participles

• subtitling
  present
• subtitled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• subtitle
  simple
• subtitles
  simple
• have subtitled
  perfect
• has subtitled
  perfect
• am subtitling
  progressive
• are subtitling
  progressive
• is subtitling
  progressive
• have been subtitling
  perfect progressive
• has been subtitling
  perfect progressive

Past

• subtitled
  simple
• had subtitled
  perfect
• was subtitling
  progressive
• were subtitling
  progressive
• had been subtitling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will subtitle
  simple
• will have subtitled
  perfect
• will be subtitling
  progressive
• will have been subtitling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of subtitle

First recorded in 1875–80; sub- + title

Explanation

A subtitle can either be the second, explanatory, part of a longer title, or the words that appear at the bottom of a movie screen to translate dialogue that's spoken in a foreign language. If you've got hearing loss, you might watch TV with the subtitles on, so that you can read the dialogue as it's spoken. And when a foreign film is shown in the U.S., it usually has English subtitles. The subtitle of a book, on the other hand, comes after (or under) its main title. You might call your memoirs "My Story," with the subtitle "An Incredible Life." The prefix sub-, fittingly, means "under."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

subtitle subtitles subtitled subtitling

What Mr. Bailey does not mention is that his book’s subtitle, “The Nine Lives of Muriel Spark,” and its basic organizational structure is also borrowed from Mr. Stannard.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Yet “Lifeguard,” true to its subtitle, pays as much attention to the magic of the beach as its dangers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026

Do you hope that people will adopt it rather than using the other terms that make up the subtitle of your book?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026

The subtitle I’m using for this project is “L.A.’s Last Enclave of Black Glory.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

Table etiquette might well be the subtitle of the volume.

From American Cookery November, 1921 by Janet McKenzie Hill

The biggest gift of the streaming revolution is subtitles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

He has also noticed his son picking up on the English subtitles on animé TV shows.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

The film had subtitles and a complicated “eat the rich” subtext.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026

The newly serious film buff suddenly refuses to watch anything with subtitles turned off.

From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026

I notice Mom watching us curiously, intently, not totally comprehending what she’s seeing, like we’re some foreign movie with no subtitles.

From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson

It’s become a huge international hit, licensed in over 200 territories around the world, subtitled in 35 languages, dubbed in 12 languages.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026

Any "video-on-demand" platform with more than 500,000 users will need to comply with rules overseen by UK broadcasting regulator Ofcom regarding "protections from harmful material" and increased availability of subtitled, signed and audio-described programming.

From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026

The second disc, subtitled “Disc 39,” takes a broader view, looking at work and family from the perspective of someone who has learned a great deal and is ready to move on.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 10, 2026

“Marley was dead,” Charles Dickens begins the novella he subtitled “A Ghost Story of Christmas.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025

This was, in short, another memory game—that was why the Staff Picks display had been subtitled “Our Most Memorable Reads.”

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein

And in motivated readers, subtitling works in tandem with reading to enhance vocabulary and literacy.

From Slate ● Sep. 26, 2023

On a more fundamental level, many American viewers not accustomed to Asian series will be bemused by the stilted, nonidiomatic quality of much of the crowdsourced subtitling.

From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2023

She has a successful career subtitling for a TV network and laughs as she describes herself as very good at "adulting" and never being late for anything.

From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2021

Additionally, casting Latino actors as Latino characters “goes hand-in-hand with my reasoning for not subtitling the Spanish,” Spielberg told IGN.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2021

When it comes to translating films and series, subtitling and dubbing are the most common forms of translation.

From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2021

Related Words

• call
• describe
• dub