blue screen

American  

[bloo skreen] / ˈblu ˌskrin /

noun

Movies, Television.

1. an electronic special-effects system that isolates and removes a static plain blue background from the live foreground shot so that the background can be filled or replaced with another image or video in a composite with the foreground.

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blue screen British  

noun

1. a special effects film technique involving filming actors against a blue screen on which effects such as computerized graphics can be added later and integrated into a single sequence

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Etymology

Origin of blue screen

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

There are some great visual jokes like a prayer symbol on the overhead panel and a Microsoft blue screen of death on the TV panels.

From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2025

To achieve the special effects of the solar eclipse, the house was reassembled on the largest blue screen sound stage in the world, constructed ad hoc at a hockey arena in Nova Scotia.

From Salon • Mar. 23, 2025

The issue was caused when an update from cyber security CrowdStrike caused Microsoft systems to "blue screen" and crash.

From BBC • Jul. 19, 2024

Now I get a blue screen with the words “Choose which account to send the email from.”

From Seattle Times • Apr. 8, 2023

During ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’ on Sunday nights, when Roberta Peters or Licia Albanese would appear on the tiny blue screen, his head would jerk up alert.

From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez