screenplay
Americannoun
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screenplays
plural
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a motion-picture or television scenario.
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Older Use. a motion picture.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of screenplay
Explanation
Before a movie can be filmed, a writer has to come up with a screenplay, a written script that describes all the action and every line the actors will speak. How entertaining, thrilling, realistic, or fantastic a movie is depends on many variables, one of the most important being the screenplay. A truly great screenplay includes brilliant dialogue that develops the characters and moves the action forward. TV shows and elaborate video games also require screenplays. Some writers adapt books or older movies into new screenplays, while others come up with entirely original stories for their screenplays.
Vocabulary lists containing screenplay
Academy Awards, List 3
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myPerspectives 7.3
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Introduction to Drama
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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Kazan’s granddaughter Zoe Kazan has written the screenplay and worked with Jeb Stuart as co-showrunners for a new “East of Eden” adaptation, a seven-episode miniseries debuting Thursday on Netflix.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
In the interim, Iñárritu kept developing the screenplay from something more realistic about Digger to a more heightened narrative.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
"Tender Loving Care" also jointly won the best screenplay prize at the Spanish festival, while its actress Kate O'Flynn shared the Silver Shell for best performance.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
These cultural comparisons would and should be interesting, if not for screenwriter Ajon Singh’s frustratingly shallow screenplay and Oppenheim’s stylish yet one-note direction.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
“As soon as I get this screenplay to Ms. Francis, I’ll be free to hang out again.”
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
Van Zandt has no signs of slowing down anytime soon, as Page Six recently reported that he is working on screenplays “set in the Garden State.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
Although Dorothy Parker tried her hand at plays and had a successful writing career in Hollywood—her screenplays included 1937’s “A Star is Born”—she excelled in briefer forms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
"In the Writing categories, the rules codify that screenplays must be human-authored to be eligible."
From Barron's ● May 1, 2026
Fennell’s eye for image-making is her greatest directorial strength; it’s what keeps her films afloat even when their screenplays struggle to tread water.
From Salon ● Feb. 14, 2026
Unable to get work there, he moved to England, where he wrote screenplays under pseudonyms.
From "Spooked!" by Gail Jarrow
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
