audience

American  

[aw-dee-uhns] / ˈɔ di əns /

noun

• audiences
  plural

1. the group of spectators at a public event; listeners or viewers collectively, as in attendance at a theater or concert.

   The audience was respectful of the speaker's opinion.

2. the persons reached by a book, radio or television broadcast, etc.; public.

   Some works of music have a wide and varied audience.

3. a regular public that manifests interest, support, enthusiasm, or the like; a following.

   Every art form has its audience.

4. opportunity to be heard; chance to speak to or before a person or group; a hearing.

5. a formal interview with a sovereign, high officer of government, or other high-ranking person.

   an audience with the pope.

6. the act of hearing, or attending to, words or sounds.

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audience British  

/ ˈɔːdɪəns /

noun

1. a group of spectators or listeners, esp at a public event such as a concert or play

2. the people reached by a book, film, or radio or television programme

3. the devotees or followers of a public entertainer, lecturer, etc; regular public

4. an opportunity to put one's point of view, such as a formal interview with a monarch or head of state

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Grammar

See collective noun.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• proaudience
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• audiences
  plural

Etymology

Origin of audience

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin audientia “act of listening, group of listeners,” from audient-, stem of audiēns “hearing” (present participle of audīre “to hear”) + -ia -ia ( def. )

Explanation

An audience can be people watching a performance, or an opportunity to speak with someone important, like an audience with your favorite actor at a "meet and greet" event. The noun audience can describe all the people watching a performance, or the part of the general public interested in a specific type of information or entertainment. For example, the audience for a show about raising children might be parents or other care-givers. Finally, an audience can be a meeting or interview, like an audience with your school's principal.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

audience audiences

“These forecasts have been abysmal. My dots wouldn’t be perfect either, so I wouldn’t give them,” he told a private audience in June 2025.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

The competition in the chicken landscape is likewise intense, and corporations are battling to capture audience attention with different chicken offerings.

From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026

Concord De La Salle in 2001 before 17,321 fans at Veterans Stadium and a national TV audience.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026

Silent performance can be an actor’s dream and a real challenge, since it relies on physical performances and visual execution to communicate with the audience.

From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026

The spiritual press appealed to their typically liberal audience with articles on the benefits of racial equality and leadership qualities in women.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

I’d wager that’s a large part of why “It Ends” feels blessedly removed from the hype of internet media, yet still very much in conversation with the fixations and lifestyles of Gen Z audiences.

From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026

Older audiences, however, are mystified by what some see as a dumbing down of popular culture.

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

Content creators have built massive audiences by filming seemingly mundane routines, from getting ready in the morning to eating lunch.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 22, 2026

BJP social media pages have also started using memes, slang and pop-culture references to reach younger audiences.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

Turandot was performed to huge audiences from Milan to Buenos Aires in short succession.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Related Words

• congregation
• crowd
• gallery
• gathering
• market
• public