cinema

noun

cin·​e·​ma ˈsi-nə-mə 

British also -ˌmä

1

: movie sense 1

—often used before another noun

cinema enthusiasts

2

: a movie theater

go to the cinema

3

: the art, technique, or business of making movies : the motion-picture medium or industry

Synonyms of cinema

• film
• filmmaking
• movie

Examples of cinema in a Sentence

a student of French cinema

We drove by the cinema to see what was playing.

Recent Examples on the Web

The outdoor cinema is wrapped by a rough-hewn Brutalist perimeter—half-lined with concrete cubes, the other half enclosed with planks salvaged from the boardwalk destroyed during Hurricane Sandy. — Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Sep. 2026

Something about the skylights transports me to a bygone New York rendered by cinema. — Nora Deligter, Curbed, 4 Sep. 2026

The ambition is not simply to be visible at Venice, but to contribute to the culture around cinema in a way that feels authentic to Armani. — Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2026

This is reflected in the increasing international recognition of Baltic cinema, the growing confidence in our producers and the emergence of a new generation of filmmakers with distinctive voices. — Annika Pham, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

short for cinematograph

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing cinema

• cinema verité
• go to the cinema

Rhymes for cinema

• minima

Kids Definition

cinema

noun

cin·​e·​ma ˈsin-ə-mə 

1

a

: movie sense 2a

a cinema director

b

: a theater for showing movies

went to the cinema

2

a

: the business of making movies

worked in cinema

b

: the art or technique of making movies

a student of French cinema

cinematic

ˌsin-ə-ˈmat-ik

adjective

cinematically

-i-k(ə-)lē

adverb

Etymology

derived from French cinématographe "motion picture," from Greek kinēma "movement" and graphe "picture," from kinein "to move" — related to kinetic