movie

noun

mov·​ie ˈmü-vē 

plural movies

1

: a recording of moving images that tells a story and that people watch (as in a theater or on the screen of a television or mobile device) : motion picture sense 2a

watched a movie after dinner

a movie about the Civil War

an action movie

especially : a feature-length film shown in a movie theater

2

the movies : a showing of a motion picture especially in a theater

went to the movies last Friday

also : a theater that shows movies

What's playing at the movies?

3

the movies : the business of making movies : the medium or industry of film

Synonyms of movie

• film
• documentary

Examples of movie in a Sentence

He wants to work in the movies.

a career in the movies

Recent Examples on the Web

Peter Van Norden, who starred in the Police Academy and Naked Gun movies, as well as the Jodie Foster drama The Accused and the Stephen King TV miniseries The Stand, has died. — Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026

Old copper landlines are going the way of so many other aging pieces of technology as smartphones have become the way many people surf the web, pay bills, watch movies and keep up with friends and family. — Jenny Jarvie follow, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026

In scenes like a heist movie in reverse, the priceless Medieval artwork was spirited into the British Museum on Friday in the dead of night, after a high-tech, tight-security operation where any slip-up could have spelled disaster. — ABC News, 10 July 2026

Rotten Tomatoes and movie-ticketing and streaming service Fandango are now part of Versant Media, which was spun out from Comcast/NBCU earlier this year. — Todd Spangler, Variety, 10 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

moving picture

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing movie

• B movie
• home movie
• movie house

Rhymes for movie

• groovy

Kids Definition

movie

noun

mov·​ie ˈmü-vē 

1

: motion picture sense 1

2

a

: a story represented in motion pictures

b

pl : a showing of a movie

went to the movies yesterday

3

plural : the business of making movies : the motion-picture industry