genre

American  

[zhahn-ruh, zhahn-r^uh] / ˈʒɑn rə, ˈʒɑ̃ rə /

noun

plural

genres

1. a class or category of artistic endeavor having a particular form, content, technique, or the like.

   the genre of epic poetry; the genre of symphonic music.

2. Fine Arts.

   1. paintings in which scenes of everyday life form the subject matter.

   2. a realistic style of painting using such subject matter.

3. genus; kind; sort; style.

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adjective

1. Fine Arts. of or relating to genre.

2. of or relating to a distinctive literary type.

genre British  

/ ˈʒɑːnrə /

noun

1. 1. kind, category, or sort, esp of literary or artistic work

   2. ( as modifier )

      genre fiction

2. a category of painting in which domestic scenes or incidents from everyday life are depicted

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genre Cultural  

1. The kind or type of a work of art, from the French, meaning “kind” or “genus.” Literary genres include the novel and the sonnet. Musical genres include the concerto and the symphony. Film genres include Westerns and horror movies.

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Etymology

Origin of genre

First recorded in 1760–70; from French: “kind, sort”; gender ¹

Example Sentences

We argue over the genre we want to be.

From Literature

Horror is filled with trend-hopping and mimicry — the genre itself holds a mirror to our cultural anxieties, replicating them with chilling, hyperbolic intensity.

From Salon

A Newcastle City Council spokesperson said it was "committed to supporting the sector and have been working with partners to create new opportunities for artists and venues across multiple music genres".

From BBC

“We will discover and create new kinds of music, new genres, new forms of music,” Shulman says.

From The Wall Street Journal

The genre hadn’t seen multiple bestsellers in the same year since 2019 — and those were from veteran acts.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• brand
• category
• character
• fashion
• kind
• style