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• premiere
  premiere

  noun

  a first public performance or showing of a play, opera, film, etc.
• première
  première

  noun

  premiere.

premiere

¹ American  

[pri-meer, -myair] / prɪˈmɪər, -ˈmjɛər /

French première

noun

• premieres
  plural

1. a first public performance or showing of a play, opera, film, etc.

2. the leading woman, as in a drama.

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verb (used with object)

premiered, premiering

1. to present publicly for the first time.

   to premiere a new foreign film.

verb (used without object)

premiered, premiering

1. to have the first public showing.

   It will premiere at the Arcadia Theater.

2. to perform publicly for the first time, as in a particular role, entertainment medium, etc..

   When does he premiere as Hamlet?

adjective

1. first; initial; principal.

   a premiere showing; the premiere attraction of the evening.

première ² American  

[pri-meer, -myair, pruh-myer] / prɪˈmɪər, -ˈmjɛər, prəˈmjɛr /

noun

• premières
  plural

1. premiere.

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premiere British  

/ ˈprɛmɪə, ˈprɛmɪˌɛə /

noun

1. the first public performance of a film, play, opera, etc

2. the leading lady in a theatre company

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verb

1. to give or be the first public performance of

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• premieres
  plural
• premières
  plural

Etymology

Origin of premiere

First recorded in 1890–95; from French première literally, “first”; feminine of premier; see origin at premier

Explanation

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

premiere première premieres premières premiered premiering

Roughly 8,000 people tuned in for the premiere.

From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026

The paper also features photos of the Princess of Wales and Tom Cruise walking together on the red carpet at the Digger film premiere, under the caption "Reign man: Tom and the royals".

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

“He’s always taking me to a restaurant that’s been open for three days,” Lee’s wife, Eva Lee, said while waiting for the “Resident Evil” premiere to begin in Los Angeles Tuesday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026

As Peter Brook, who directed the 1958 Broadway premiere starring Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt, wrote in “The Empty Space,” “If you just let a play speak, it may not make a sound.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

If there had been a big premiere the night before with a lot of people attending and throwing things on the floor, we would be there until eight in the morning.

From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana

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

Abrahamsen upends that dynamic by choosing to give the role to a male singer—at the première, the formidable Danish bass-baritone Johan Reuter.

From The New Yorker ● Dec. 30, 2019

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

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

Wonka's The Golden Ticket premieres on Netflix this week, with a two-part finale scheduled for 30 September.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

The CBS newsmagazine premieres its 59th season Sunday, following dramatic shake-ups.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Season 4 of “Tulsa King” premieres Friday, Oct.

From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2026

Risk-aversion on the part of budget-conscious studio executives means many studios have preferred to launch films through their own tightly controlled premieres instead of at festivals, which provide no guarantee of rave reviews from critics.

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

By the second half of the twentieth century this was certainly not the case for premieres of new operas or symphonies.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Stevens’s background was in developing new plays, and under his watch, C.T.C. began to mount regional and world premières, some of which would go on to have life elsewhere.

From The New Yorker ● Sep. 17, 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

But over the course of three seasons—the fourth premières tonight, on FX—“The Americans” has become one of the most multilayered dramas on TV; nothing else can match its combination of genuine sadness and muted, mordant hilarity.

From The New Yorker ● Mar. 16, 2016

The so-called premières de modes frequently received more than 1,800 francs a year, while the apprêteuses received only from 15 to 20 sous a day.

From Principles of Political Economy, Vol. II by Wilhelm Roscher

When “NAZA” premiered at the Venice Film Festival on Sept. 10, the documentary received a 25-minute standing ovation, setting a festival record.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

Naza premiered last Thursday at the Venice Film Festival, where it received a 25-minute standing ovation, but has not yet been made available to the wider public.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

When Alex Gibney’s film production “Musk” premiered at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday, it received a five-minute standing ovation, shouts of “thank you” from the audience and endless play across social media.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

The film premiered Tuesday at the Venice Film Festival to a lengthy standing ovation and strong reviews.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Then, in 1750, he premiered a controversial new work that was a box-office flop.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

“Dang!,” an amiably chaotic new adult animated comedy premiering Tuesday on Netflix, tells the story of the Dangs, three Chinese American siblings living in New York City.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Billed as a sequel series premiering Sept. 24, a Wayne offspring is our anchor for the freshman class at Hillman College, the show’s fictional historically Black college based in Virginia.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

The months-long integration of Disney+ and Hulu appears to have reached a tipping point, with nearly everything premiering on Hulu this month also available on Disney+.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

The same is true of the deal’s union opponents in Hollywood who worry the merger could result in fewer of their films premiering on the big screen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 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

Related Words

• beginning
• debut
• opening