B-movie

[ bee-moo-vee ]

noun

a low-budget movie made especially to accompany a major feature film on a double bill.

Origin of B-movie

First recorded in 1945–50

Also called B-pic·ture [bee-pik-cher] /ˈbiˌpɪk tʃər/ .

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use B-movie in a sentence

A lot of big-time directors have been influenced by B-movie guys like Kaufman and Roger Corman, in particular.
‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Filmmaker James Gunn on His Glorious Space Opera and Rise to the A-List | Marlow Stern | August 3, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
No wonder the summit was eclipsed by the B-movie imbroglio over Secret Service agents moonlighting as sex tourists.
Cartagena Summit’s Other Outrage: Obama’s Indifference to Latin Issues | Mac Margolis | April 27, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
His skin tone and sunken cheeks have inspired unfavorable comparisons to Skeletor and a diabolical B-movie villain.
The Ugly Husbands Club | Tony Doukopil | July 29, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
Meanwhile—and this is like a scene from some B-movie about Washington—some GOP lawmakers were chanting “fire him, fire him!”
GOP's Circular Firing Squad | Howard Kurtz | July 27, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
A B-movie student appreciates nothing more than when the headlines advertise the film.
'Mexploitation' at the Movies | Bryan Curtis | August 31, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for B-movie

B-movie

noun

a film originally made (esp in Hollywood in the 1940s and 50s) as a supporting film, now often considered as a genre in its own right

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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