silver screen

American  

noun

1. motion pictures; the motion-picture industry.

   a star of the silver screen.

2. a special screen on which motion pictures are projected.

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silver screen British  

noun

1. films collectively or the film industry

2. the screen onto which films are projected

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Etymology

Origin of silver screen

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

The night will be filled with drama beyond the silver screen as Hollywood’s biggest stars gather at L.A.’s Dolby Theatre to honor, um, themselves.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

Like many illustrious figures, the cowboy turns out to be a more nuanced individual than the often one-dimensional representations of the silver screen.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026

Since the streaming boom, studios have been scrambling to figure out exactly what it is that viewers want to see on the silver screen, and their expectations frequently fall short.

From Salon • Jan. 6, 2026

It’s been 18 years since “Rush Hour 3” hit the silver screen in 2007, but its producers and director Brett Ratner have reportedly been shopping around a sequel ever since.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 25, 2025

Joe, who had just seen a Paramount movie short featuring a cartoon character new to the silver screen, Popeye the Sailor, wrote in his scrapbook that night, “I yam disgusted.”

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown