cinema

American  

[sin-uh-muh] / ˈsɪn ə mə /

noun

• cinemas
  plural

1. movies collectively, as an art.

   During the Great Depression, cinema provided psychological comfort, an escape from the harsh realities of daily life.

2. Chiefly British. Also kinema movie theater.

   Do you know if there is a cinema near the British Museum?

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cinema British  

/ ˈsɪnɪmə /

noun

1. 1. a place designed for the exhibition of films

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cinema seat

2. 1. the art or business of making films

   2. films collectively

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cinematic
  adjective
• cinematically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cinemas
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of cinema

First recorded in 1895–1900; short for cinematograph

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Explanation

A cinema is another word for a movie theater. If you love films, you probably spend a lot of time at the cinema. It's more common to say cinema in Britain than in the United States, but any English speaker will know what you're talking about if you ask, "Want to go to the cinema?" You can also use cinema to talk about the film industry and its history: "This is my favorite film in all of American cinema." The word was first used in 1899, from the French cinéma, which was a shortened form of cinématographe, "motion picture projector and camera."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cinema cinemas

The 22-year-old cinema and media studies student graduates in December, and she’s admittedly “a little freaked out” by what awaits her.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

It has outlasted kingdoms and empires, inspired religious devotion and political movements, and found new life, again and again, on TV and in cinema.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

"It's the largest production in the history of Indian cinema," said Malhotra, who has branded it India's "Star Wars" or "Lord of the Rings".

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

Yet few scenes in cinema depict the dismal reality of an ill-advised new marriage better than that of Rosy sitting on her new bed and rather despairingly running her gloved hand across its brass frame.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

In addition to the cinema, Jalil owned land in Karokh, land in Farah, three carpet stores, a clothing shop, and a black 1956 Buick Roadmaster.

From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini

The film's popular reception will become clearer soon as audiences fill cinemas.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

China's first fully AI-generated feature film opens in cinemas on Friday in what promises to be a tough box-office test for the country's booming tech industry as advance ticket sales lag.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026

Wicker is released in UK cinemas on October 30.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

As Disney's $71bn buyout of 21st Century Fox in 2019 proved, mega-deals can lead to fewer films in cinemas.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

In smaller cinemas a pianist or organist would provide a similarly live accompaniment; Russian classical composer Dmitri Shostakovich supported himself in Leningrad in 1924-5 by doing just that.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

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Related Words

• film
• movie house
• movie theater

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