videotape

1 of 2

noun

vid·​eo·​tape ˈvi-dē-ō-ˌtāp How to pronounce videotape (audio)
: a recording of visual images and sound (as of a television production) made on magnetic tape
also : the magnetic tape used for such a recording

videotape

2 of 2

verb

videotaped; videotaping; videotapes

transitive verb

: to make a videotape of
videotape a show

Examples of videotape in a Sentence

Noun I watched the movie on videotape. watched a videotape of her daughter's first ballet recital Verb They videotaped the baby's first steps.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Make or authorize the making of a videotape of a child, or record or authorize the recording of a child’s voice. Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Feb. 2024 After that, Ritter and other American swimming officials examined CBS’s videotape of the race. Richard Sandomir, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2024 In the American remake of the 1998 Japanese film Ringu, Naomi Watts plays a journalist trying to get to the bottom of why four people — including her own niece — died after watching a certain videotape. Gwen Ihnat, EW.com, 26 Sep. 2023 Marion Barry, most famously, won another term as mayor after the FBI caught him on videotape smoking crack at a downtown hotel. Paul Schwartzman, Washington Post, 29 Jan. 2024 Answer Man knows this because he’s seen a videotape of that pilot. John Kelly, Washington Post, 9 Dec. 2023 The Tsunami showed up at the Coach’s home and was shown the videotape. Jake Adelstein, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2023 This avoided the kind of schism that videotape would face during the VHS-Betamax war and insured that the Phillips cassette would be the dominant design. Jon Michaud, The New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2023 In addition, many libraries now offer programs geared toward adults, who can participate in a book discussion, take English classes, learn how to knit, transform old slides and videotapes into digital family heirlooms via a library scanner, earn a high school degree, and even take college classes. Karen MacPherson, Washington Post, 12 May 2023
Verb
New York City police are searching for an unidentified young woman who was recorded last week physically assaulting an Asian woman and harassing her family, as well as a bystander who videotaped the confrontation. Kimmy Yam, NBC News, 8 Aug. 2023 Jury selection is scheduled to start Monday in the trial of Brian Steven Smith, who is accused of killing two women and videotaping one of the murders. Christine Pelisek, Peoplemag, 5 Feb. 2024 And in 2012, he was videotaped yelling and jabbing protesters with his baton at an Occupy Wall Street demonstration. Sam Roberts, New York Times, 18 Jan. 2024 Jonathan Novick videotaped encounters on an average day in New York using a hidden camera. Rachel Swalin, Health, 20 Sep. 2023 Fans were loving how into the spirit Swift got during the game, and the official Sunday Night Football account shared a video of her dancing alongside Donna, 71, and Brittany, 28, as fans in front of their suite looked on and videotaped the fun moment. Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 14 Jan. 2024 People follow foster youth around in stores and videotape them on the street, foster care providers say. Abigail Kramer, ProPublica, 3 Jan. 2024 The scientists have already started building tiny staircases with laser cutters and videotaping the micro-rollers climbing up and down the other. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 26 Dec. 2023 After videotaping and reviewing felines’facial expressions at a cat cafe for nearly a year, Florkiewicz debunked her lifelong belief. Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'videotape.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1953, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1957, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of videotape was in 1953

Dictionary Entries Near videotape

Cite this Entry

“Videotape.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/videotape. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

videotape

1 of 2 noun
vid·​eo·​tape ˈvid-ē-ō-ˌtāp How to pronounce videotape (audio)
: a recording of visual images and sound (as of a television production) made on magnetic tape
also : the magnetic tape used for such a recording

videotape

2 of 2 verb
: to make a videotape of
videotape a show

More from Merriam-Webster on videotape

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!