subtitle

American  

[suhb-tahyt-l] / ˈsʌbˌtaɪt l /

noun

1. a secondary or subordinate title of a literary work, usually of explanatory character.

2. a repetition of the leading words in the full title of a book at the head of the first page of text.

3. Movies, Television, Digital Technology.

   1. a translation or transcription of spoken language in a television program, film, video, or video game, as of dialogue in a foreign language or speech that is audible but may not be easily understood, displayed as a graphic overlay on the lower part of the screen.

   2. caption.

   3. (in silent films) an intertitle or caption.

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verb (used with object)

subtitled, subtitling

1. to supply a subtitle or subtitles for.

subtitle British  

/ ˈsʌbˌtaɪtəl, -ˈtɪtʃə-, sʌbˈtɪtjʊlə /

noun

1. an additional subordinate title given to a literary or other work

2. Also called: caption.  (often plural) films

   1. a written translation superimposed on a film that has foreign dialogue

   2. explanatory text on a silent film

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verb

1. (tr; usually passive) to provide a subtitle for

Other Word Forms

• subtitular adjective
• unsubtitled adjective

Etymology

Origin of subtitle

First recorded in 1875–80; sub- + title

Explanation

A subtitle can either be the second, explanatory, part of a longer title, or the words that appear at the bottom of a movie screen to translate dialogue that's spoken in a foreign language. If you've got hearing loss, you might watch TV with the subtitles on, so that you can read the dialogue as it's spoken. And when a foreign film is shown in the U.S., it usually has English subtitles. The subtitle of a book, on the other hand, comes after (or under) its main title. You might call your memoirs "My Story," with the subtitle "An Incredible Life." The prefix sub-, fittingly, means "under."

Example Sentences

The subtitle, “An Unexpected Archive of Celebrity Portraits,” is stamped on its cover like a travel visa.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Okrent’s subtitle, “Art Isn’t Easy,” is a lyric from Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026

In a phone conversation and later at his office, Klapper said the subtitle is going to be, “Let Me Explain.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 1, 2026

Rather than a textbook or encyclopedia entry—a digest of all the known facts—our model is the subtitle of Kenneth Clark’s 1969 “Civilisation” series: “A personal view.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025

All that the continuity-writer in the studio will have to do will be to take every third sentence from the book and make a subtitle from it.

From Love Conquers All by Williams, Gluyas

Related Words

• call
• describe
• dub