motion picture

American  

[moh-shuhn pik-cher] / ˈmoʊ ʃən ˈpɪk tʃər /

noun

1. Movies.

   1. a sequence of consecutive still images photographed in a series by a specially designed camera motion-picture camera and thrown on a screen by a projector motion-picture projector in such rapid succession as to give the illusion of natural movement.

      Jean Cocteau produced some of the most innovative motion pictures of the postwar era.

   2. such a video sequence recorded and played in other media formats, as VHS or digital video.

      Critics have given mixed reviews to the new trend of feature-length motion pictures shot on smartphones.

2. a story, event, or the like, presented in this form.

   The motion picture is adapted from the novel of the same name.

3. motion pictures, the art, technique, or business of producing motion pictures.

   The Academy honors achievement in motion pictures every year at the Oscars.

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motion picture British  

noun

1. Also called: film.

   1. a sequence of images of moving objects photographed by a camera and providing the optical illusion of continuous movement when projected onto a screen

   2. a form of entertainment, information, etc, composed of such a sequence of images and shown in a cinema, etc

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Other Word Forms

• motion-picture
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of motion picture

First recorded in 1890–95

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

motion picture

The late, great Hollywood screen writer William Goldman once famously said of his industry, “Nobody knows anything. … Not one person in the entire motion picture field knows for a certainty what’s going to work.”

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 6, 2026

During the initial years of the motion picture, cameras, for example, were “too cumbersome” to capture anything but a “scheduled event,” Mr. Doherty writes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

“This movie takes a grounded, emotional approach to the story, and I actually believe that’s what audiences are hungry for,” said Tom Rothman, chairman of Sony’s motion picture group.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026

What we’re likely to be left with is an adaptation that hits all of the beats of the hundreds of motion picture takes on the story with all of their charms and idiosyncrasies smoothed away.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

It’s like watching a motion picture, something you know is just made up, and yet you believe it.

From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz

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Related Words

• cinema
• feature film
• flick
• talkie

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