Tinseltown
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of Tinseltown
C20: from the insubstantial glitter of the film world
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A wary Tinseltown reluctantly lined up behind Netflix as the lesser of two evils, only to watch Paramount keep raising its bid until the streamer walked away.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
And in fulfilling a dream they both had, the music-loving granddad has returned from Tinseltown a star in his own right.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Jerry Seinfeld, who presumably knows a thing or two about show business, has said the film industry as currently constituted is kaput, even if Tinseltown has been slow to understand what’s happened in recent decades.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025
Tinseltown has made many great films about the exploits of cops: “L.A Confidential,” “Heat,” “Serpico,” “Training Day,” just to name a few.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2025
They’re all movies from when Hollywood was called Tinseltown, and they couldn’t make explosions.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
