intermission
Americannoun
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a short interval between the acts of a play or parts of a public performance, usually a period of approximately 10 or 15 minutes, allowing the performers and audience a rest.
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a period during which action temporarily ceases; an interval between periods of action or activity.
They studied for hours without an intermission.
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the act or fact of intermitting; state of being intermitted.
to work without intermission.
noun
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an interval, as between parts of a film
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a period between events or activities; pause
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the act of intermitting or the state of being intermitted
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of intermission
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin intermissiōn- (stem of intermissiō ) interruption, equivalent to intermiss ( us ) (past participle of intermittere to intermit ) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
The lengthy pause in the middle of a play or concert is called an intermission. If you're hungry, you might have time to grab a snack during the intermission. The word intermission has a Latin root, intermissionem, "a breaking off or interruption." Originally, it meant any temporary pause, but by the 1850s it was often used in reference to breaks between acts in theatrical performances. In the UK, this is known as an "interval," but in North America, theater and concert attendees wait until the intermission to use the restroom.
Vocabulary lists containing intermission
Reading: Literature - Drama - Introductory
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Reading: Literature - Drama - Middle School
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Blasted to Smithereens: Synonyms for "Break"
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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.
The 1750s were a slow decade resembling a theatrical intermission.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
But he never wrote it, and during intermission the audience is polled to see whether Mr. Lynn’s prologue should be performed.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
Killorn, however, scored the Ducks’ second power-play goal less than two minutes before the second intermission, putting the Ducks in front to stay.
From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026
This slightly trimmed concert version ran three hours with one intermission.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
And so Jimmy Gobles death at the end of 1956 wasn’t so much an end as an intermission.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
Definitions 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.
