sequel

American  

[see-kwuhl] / ˈsi kwəl /

noun

• sequels
  plural

1. a literary work, movie, etc., that is complete in itself but continues the narrative of a preceding work.

2. an event or circumstance following something; subsequent course of affairs.

3. a result, consequence, or inference.

   Synonyms:

   end, outgrowth, upshot, aftermath

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sequel British  

/ ˈsiːkwəl /

noun

1. anything that follows from something else; development

2. a consequence or result

3. a novel, play, etc, that continues a previously related story

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sequel Cultural  

1. A narrative or dramatic work complete in itself but designed to follow an earlier one. Through the Looking-Glass is a sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a sequel to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• sequels
  plural

Etymology

Origin of sequel

1375–1425; late Middle English sequel ( e ) < Latin sequēla what follows, equivalent to sequ ( ī ) to follow + -ēla noun suffix

Explanation

A sequel is a continuation or part two. The Empire Strikes Back and Toy Story 2 are sequels. Many successful movies have sequels. The most common meaning of sequel is for a book or movie that follows another, but the term can be used for just about anything that comes second. We might say of an actress who begins her career with a bang, "What will she do for a sequel?" A football team that wins a championship may have trouble with the sequel — trying to win another one next year. All sequels have a tough challenge — living up to the original.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sequel sequels

Anne Hathaway, Cruise’s co-star on the coming sequel to 1990’s “Days of Thunder,” posted “loved this brilliant movie” on the film-centric social media app Letterboxd, giving “Digger” five stars.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

The film is a strange sequel to “The Social Network” that no one saw coming because no one really asked for it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

The “Crazy Rich Asians” series could fill the void left by the onetime promise of a “Crazy Rich Asians” sequel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

Broaden the search to state and local contests and there are 474 electoral rematches nationwide -- proving that in American politics, as in Hollywood, there is rarely any objection to a sequel.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

It made sense, Gus leveraging his terminality to make my dream come true: The sequel was a tiny thing to die for, but it was the biggest thing left at his disposal.

From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green

After a decade of playing it safe with “Mission: Impossible” and “Top Gun” sequels, this is what it looks like when Hollywood’s last classic movie star finally sticks out his neck.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026

That’s because legacy sequels rarely take the risks they need to stand alone, worth considering apart from their predecessors.

From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026

The third instalment follows two sequels backed by Film4, which were released in 2011 and 2014.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

They have 36 scheduled for 2027 including sequels to “A Quiet Place” and “Superman.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

But I’d also played hundreds of other classic text adventure games that year, including all of Zork’s sequels, and so most of the details of the game had now faded in my memory.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Related Words

• conclusion
• ending
• sequence
• series