diorama

American  

[dahy-uh-ram-uh, -rah-muh] / ˌdaɪ əˈræm ə, -ˈrɑ mə /

noun

• dioramas
  plural

1. a scene, often in miniature, reproduced in three dimensions by placing objects, figures, etc., in front of a painted background.

2. a life-size display representing a scene from nature, a historical event, or the like, using stuffed wildlife, wax figures, real objects, etc., in front of a painted or photographed background.

3. a spectacular picture, partly translucent, for exhibition through an aperture, made more realistic by various illuminating devices.

4. a building or room, often circular, for exhibiting such a scene or picture, especially as a continuous unit along or against the walls.

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diorama British  

/ ˌdaɪəˈrɑːmə /

noun

1. a miniature three-dimensional scene, in which models of figures are seen against a background

2. a picture made up of illuminated translucent curtains, viewed through an aperture

3. a museum display, as of an animal, of a specimen in its natural setting

4. films a scene produced by the rearrangement of lighting effects

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• dioramic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• dioramas
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of diorama

1815–25; < French, equivalent to di- di- ³ + Greek ( h ) órāma view ( horā-, variant stem of horân to see, look + -ma noun suffix denoting the result of action)

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Explanation

If you use a shoebox and tiny toys to recreate the Battle of Normandy, you are creating a diorama, or three-dimensional model, of the event. At the Museum of Natural History in New York, you'll see dioramas, or scenes of animals or ancient peoples in their habitats. Before things like movies, television, and computers became common, the best way for large numbers of people to get an idea of what a lion might look like devouring its prey was by diorama.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

diorama dioramas

"It successfully generated enough formic acid to power a miniature diorama in the pavilion, showing its potential as an efficient artificial photosynthesis system that could potentially be used to charge applications in our homes."

From Science Daily ● Jun. 11, 2026

A life-size diorama attempts to bring the battlefield to life.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

Yet his compulsion to embrace the world’s majesty in the manner of an illustrated weekly or a Victorian diorama conflicted with the project of capturing the poetry of untamed America.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

A diorama of a pride of lions can stand in for a hunt, or for a hierarchy, reinforcing the idea of the lion king.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2024

It contained a diorama of a tramp asleep in a churchyard in front of a church door.

From "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman

With the overhead lights dimmed and soft light spilling from the dioramas, the displays looked like windows to other worlds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

The setting, which changes from a blank Brutalism to a trailer-park-home installation suggesting one of Arnold’s cold-eyed dioramas, creates its own theatrical coup.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026

The concept is by the visual artist Susan Zeeman Rogers and the 75-minute show works primarily as a narrative for her videos and miniature dioramas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 12, 2026

Rousseau’s make-believe world, beautifully abundant, unfolds like a series of enchanting though dramatic dioramas in the last gallery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 15, 2025

He did not take any interest in the discarded skins of famous goblin heroes and actors, despite all of the interesting dioramas.

From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin

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