on-screen

adverb or adjective

variants or onscreen
1
: in a movie or a television program
But the makers of the 1958 movie understood that this most subtle of writers was telling a tale about the froth of life, and they celebrated it on-screen with gusto.Gerald Asher
The sixth-grader reportedly earned $1 million for starring in the upcoming My Girl, which pairs him with Anna Chlumsky for his first onscreen kiss.Alexander Tresniowski
2
: on a computer or television screen
You can watch a football game, see a small icon onscreen offering player statistics, click it with the remote, and view the stats.Edward W. Desmond
… handheld joysticks and gamepads that jolt and jar with the on-screen action.Leigh Gallagher

Examples of on-screen in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The show ran for 7 seasons from 2011 to 2018 New Girl featured some of the most unforgettable on-screen relationships of the 2010s — but the cast's off-screen relationships are just as adorable. Julie Tremaine, People.com, 6 July 2025 Even though the Bachman secret was out by the time The Running Man hit theaters, King insisted that his pseudonym got the on-screen credit. Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 2 July 2025 Today, Thurman returns to her on-screen fighting roots by starring alongside Charlize Theron in The Old Guard 2, which is now streaming on Netflix. Jeff Conway, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025 Maya will not be the first time Haggard and Ramsey have played mother-daughter roles on-screen, coming after the former played Johanna, parent of Ramsey’s titular leader in the Netflix series Hilda. Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 2 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for on-screen

Word History

First Known Use

1929, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of on-screen was in 1929

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Cite this Entry

“On-screen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on-screen. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.

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