a first public performance or showing of a play, opera, film, etc.
the leading woman, as in a drama.
to have the first public showing.
It will premiere at the Arcadia Theater.
to perform publicly for the first time, as in a particular role, entertainment medium, etc..
When does he premiere as Hamlet?
the first public performance of a film, play, opera, etc
the leading lady in a theatre company
First recorded in 1890–95; from French première literally, “first”; feminine of premier; see origin at premier
A premiere is the first showing of a work of art. A movie premiere often takes place in Los Angeles or New York, with stars in attendance and the iconic red carpet rolled out to greet them. Premiere comes from the French première, which means "first." The French origin probably accounts for the word's being seen as elegant and exciting. Over time, premiere has spawned its own verb––to premiere means to perform or be performed for the first time.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It will premiere at Edinburgh Film Festival In August, and features a host of Welsh actors.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
In that time, the 23-year-old not only finished filming the Netflix hit show “Stranger Things,” which catapulted him to global stardom, and promoted the final season upon its premiere.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Speaking to the BBC at the 1993 premiere of Jurassic Park, which co-starred Richard Attenborough and Laura Dern, Neill said the way the film had been received was a "big surprise".
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
The world premiere of Francesco Filidei’s “Accabadora” was also worth the trip.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Arletta Paisley’s summer season premiere was only a few days away, and H & H was showing a heavy rotation of reruns to build excitement about the new show.
From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry
One of Ms. Zeani's career highlights was singing the lead role of Blanche in the première of Francis Poulenc’s “Dialogues of the Carmelites” at La Scala in 1957.
From New York Times ● Mar. 21, 2023
On Monday the outgoing PM, Jean Castex, called Ms Borne "première ministre" - a feminine form of the usual "premier ministre" - to underline the historical significance of her appointment.
From BBC ● May 17, 2022
Notwithstanding the conservatism of the opera business, many top houses offer a world première every season or two.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 30, 2019
“It feels like we won, but we lost—because it’s not ours anymore,” Josh said, at the Lincoln Center première.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 9, 2019
I told Doreen I would not go to the show or the luncheon or the film première, but that I would not go to Coney Island either, I would stay in bed.
From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath
This was an era of moviegoing when premieres were essential to a movie’s box office success, drawing substantial marketing opportunities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
The Cannes Film Festival wraps up today after two weeks of marathon screenings, black-tie gala premieres and beach parties.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 23, 2026
Songer has had over 100m streams in the last year alone, as well as two BBC Radio 1 Hottest Record in the World premieres with Jack Saunders.
From BBC ● May 14, 2026
It’s a curious trend considering Cannes premieres have become a staple at the Academy Awards and three 2025 selections were nominated for best picture this calendar year.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
I was invited to dozens of parties a week: art-gallery openings, benefit balls, movie premieres, book parties, and private dinners in marble- floored dining rooms.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
I’ll just trust you to catch up on the whole thing so that you can watch the final season, which premières in January.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 11, 2018
More than a hundred composers were featured, more than half of them supplying world premières.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 20, 2016
He was mooching around film sets and premières, and the parts began rolling in.
From Economist ● Jun. 9, 2016
As I commented when Levine retired, the company’s record of world premières in the past forty years is embarrassing: only five of them, together with the American première of Nico Muhly’s “Two Boys.”
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 2, 2016
In 1842, she went to Paris, where she soon took rank with the best jeunes premières of the capital.
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine - Volume 61, No. 376, February, 1847 by Various
Season 3, which premièred the week before last, features a whole new cast.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 5, 2019
It premièred at festivals more than a year ago and quickly became the subject of contentious debate.
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 28, 2019
Since the show premièred, the #MeToo movement has shed light on how women are asked to compromise themselves, not only in sex work but in entertainment and almost every other walk of life.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 19, 2019
When the show premièred, in 2017, “Big Little Lies,” adapted from Liane Moriarty’s novel set in Australia, was presented as a miniseries, not a serialized drama.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 9, 2019
“Younger,” a sweet, smart show on TV Land, which premièred in 2015, faced a tougher set of circumstances.
From The New Yorker ● May 27, 2019
The company recently expanded into shoe odor, and also released a line of cleaning products, called Supernatural, which sold out within two hours of premièring on Gwyneth Paltrow’s life-style site, Goop.
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 28, 2019
The first day of rehearsals had just ended for his new show, “The Black Clown,” which is premièring in New York at the Mostly Mozart Festival, at Lincoln Center, on July 24th.
From The New Yorker ● Jul. 24, 2019
When the trailer for the adaptation premiered, Lesa Rubin, 60, and her daughter Katy Tometich, 34, dissected it together.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
The American animated series premiered in 2005 on Nickelodeon, a network entirely devoted to children’s programming.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
She recently returned to the spotlight with a starring role in the Prime Video series “Every Year After,” which premiered on June 10 and marked the actress’ first major project since 2022.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026
Barnard plays the title role in the new film, which premiered at the festival and will be released later this year.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
It was quite a different sight a year later when Monteverdi’s new opera, Arianna, premiered.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
“Off Campus” was viewed by 36 million viewers within the first 12 days of premiering, the streamer reported, becoming its third most-watched show debut ever.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Signatories included French superstar Juliette Binoche as well as director Arthur Harari, who co-wrote the Oscar-winning "Anatomy of a Fall" in 2023 and is premiering his film "The Unknown" in the main competition in Cannes.
From Barron's ● May 17, 2026
Hollywood star John Travolta has been surprised with an honourary Palme d'Or, the Cannes equivalent of a lifetime achievement award, while premiering his directorial debut at the film festival.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
The number of reality programs premiering across all viewing platforms has fallen by 33% since 2022 — from 1,193 in 2022 to 794 last year, according to Luminate, a media research group.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026
Through sheer coincidence, around the same time Mom was doing her research on the club, a documentary film about Peter Westbrook himself was premiering in New York City.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
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.
