scene

[seen]

noun

1. the place where some action or event occurs.

   He returned to the scene of the accident.

   Synonyms: focus, center, location, stage, arena

2. any view or picture.

   The scene that lay before me, with its snow and colorful leaves, was beautiful.

3. an incident or situation in real life.

   She witnessed the scene at the restaurant as it happened.

   Synonyms: episode

4. an embarrassing outbreak or display of anger, strong feeling, or bad manners.

   Please don't make a scene in such a public place.

   Synonyms: show, spectacle, demonstration

5. a division of a play or of an act of a play, usually representing a passage of time in a single setting, featuring a specific character or group of characters.

   Scene Four takes place in a city park at dawn.

6. a unit of action or a segment of a story in a play, motion picture, or television show.

   The DVD contains many short scenes showing classic plane models at U.S. and European airports.

7. the place in which the action of a play or part of a play is supposed to occur.

8. scenery.

9. Literature.

   1. an episode, situation, or the like, as in a narrative.

   2. the setting or locale of a story.

10. the stage, especially of an ancient Greek or Roman theater.

11. an area or sphere of activity, current interest, etc..

    the rock music scene;

    the fashion scene.

scene

/ siːn /

noun

1. the place where an action or event, real or imaginary, occurs

2. the setting for the action of a play, novel, etc

3. an incident or situation, real or imaginary, esp as described or represented

4. 1. a subdivision of an act of a play, in which the time is continuous and the setting fixed

   2. a single event, esp a significant one, in a play

5. films a shot or series of shots that constitutes a unit of the action

6. the backcloths, stage setting, etc, for a play or film set; scenery

7. the prospect of a place, landscape, etc

8. a display of emotion, esp an embarrassing one to the onlookers

9. informal,  the environment for a specific activity

   the fashion scene

10. informal,  interest or chosen occupation

    classical music is not my scene

11. rare,  the stage, esp of a theatre in ancient Greece or Rome

12. out of public view; privately

Other Word Forms

• interscene noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of scene¹

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin scēna “background” (of the stage), from Greek skēnḗ “booth” (where actors dressed)

Word History and Origins

Origin of scene¹

C16: from Latin scēna theatrical stage, from Greek skēnē tent, stage

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. make the scene, to appear in a particular place or engage in a particular activity.

   Let's make the scene downtown tonight. She was never one to make the drug scene.

2. behind the scenes. behind the scenes.

see behind the scenes; make a scene; make the scene; on the scene; set the scene for.

Synonym Study

See view.

Example Sentences

“I almost see the role of an architect as a kind of director: behind the scenes, setting up the sets and allowing life to unfold within these spaces.”

From Los Angeles Times

If there’s a scene that best encapsulates the tragically abbreviated career of John Candy, it’s not necessarily from his time on the sketch-comedy series “SCTV” or from movies like “Stripes” or “Uncle Buck.”

From Los Angeles Times

They tried to end the protest quickly, but the paramotors reached the scene earlier than expected, he said.

From BBC

"Get back in your pen, pig!" yelled the man, as flannel-wearing bike commuters stopped by to observe the scene.

From BBC

“Father Figure” was inspired by a scene from “Succession,” while “Wood” — a track about her fiancé, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s uh, “magic wand” — started out in a “very innocent place.”

From Salon

Related Words

• arena 
• display 
• landscape 
• location 
• picture 
• place 
• scenery 
• set 
• setting 
• show 
• sight 
• site 
• spectacle 
• spot 
• stage 
• theater 
• view