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• on-camera
  on-camera

  adjective

  within the range of a motion-picture or television camera; while being filmed or televised.
• on camera
  on camera

  Being filmed, as in When the talk-show host began, I wasn't sure if we were on camera. This usage dates from the first half of the 1900s, soon after the birth of motion-picture and television filming. The same is true of the antonym off camera, meaning “outside the view of a movie or TV camera,” as in Go ahead and scratch—we're off camera now.

on-camera

American  

[on-kam-er-uh, -kam-ruh, awn-] / ˈɒnˈkæm ər ə, -ˈkæm rə, ˈɔn- /

adjective

1. within the range of a motion-picture or television camera; while being filmed or televised.

   on-camera blunders; The assassination happened on-camera.

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on camera Idioms  

1. Being filmed, as in When the talk-show host began, I wasn't sure if we were on camera. This usage dates from the first half of the 1900s, soon after the birth of motion-picture and television filming. The same is true of the antonym off camera, meaning “outside the view of a movie or TV camera,” as in Go ahead and scratch—we're off camera now.

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Etymology

Origin of on-camera

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

on-camera on camera

His usual on-camera affect was that of a dapper, pleasant, reasonably handsome young man who invariably finds himself in trouble.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

The House of Representatives Oversight Committee issued two subpoenas for Black to share NDAs and give an on-camera deposition under oath.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

“Inside CECOT” was scheduled to run Dec. 22 but was pulled the day before air by Weiss, who believed it needed more reporting, including a direct on-camera response from the administration, which did not participate.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

Unlike the first film, where a smaller budget and the fear of incurring Anna Wintour’s wrath kept many fashion figures from appearing on-camera, the sequel goes all-out.

From Salon ● May 1, 2026

But that fear paled next to the deal the reporters had offered: a view of Mount St. Helens from the sky, in exchange for an on-camera interview.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Controversies such as a 2002 autopsy performed in London -- on camera and before an audience —- further fuelled his notoriety.

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

In 2002 he caused further controversy by performing the first public autopsy in London for 170 years on camera.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

People are staying home, she says, because of bleak economics, dating apps, streaming services and the fear of being caught behaving badly on camera phones—all leading to a sharp decline in nightlife.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Like Buster Keaton before him, Knoxville has an uncanny awareness of how his death-defying escapades appear on camera.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

She said she looked better on camera in natural light.

From "The Landry News" by Andrew Clements