letterboxed

adjective

let·​ter·​boxed ˈle-tər-ˌbäkst 

variants or less commonly letterbox

ˈle-tər-ˌbäks 

: formatted so as to display the full frame (as of a recorded video) within the screen area of a device (such as a television or phone) that has a different aspect ratio

Letterboxed videos allow viewers to see the entire widescreen film image on their TV screens, with narrow black bars at top and bottom …

—John McCay

… if you're watching Netflix or YouTube videos shot in 16:9, you have the option of a letterboxed view with black bars on the side …

—James Titcomb

It's a slightly awkward workaround Apple has implemented to stop apps looking letterboxed as developers … update to the new screen sizes …

—Stuart Miles

letterboxing

ˈle-tər-ˌbäk-siŋ 

noun

Examples of letterboxed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Note that some older films may play in a letterboxed format. —PCMAG, 13 Jan. 2025

The app was technically available on iPad before today, but the lack of full support forced it to run as a letterboxed iPhone app, which impacted the emulator’s touch controls and prevented games from using the full iPad screen. —Jess Weatherbed, The Verge, 10 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

perhaps from the resemblance of the picture on the TV screen or the bands above and below the picture to slots in a mailbox

First Known Use

1982, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for letterboxed

• boxed