behind-the-scenes

adjective

be·​hind-the-scenes bi-ˈhīnd-ṯẖə-ˈsēnz 

bē-

1

: being or working out of public view or in secret

behind-the-scenes lobbying for more money

a behind-the-scenes player

2

: revealing or reporting the hidden workings

a behind-the-scenes account

a behind-the-scenes glimpse

Synonyms of behind-the-scenes

• confidential
• secret
• private

Examples of behind-the-scenes in a Sentence

a tell-all book about the behind-the-scenes negotiations that got him the vice presidential nomination

behind-the-scenes negotiations that resulted in the hostages being released unharmed

Recent Examples on the Web

Erivo posted a collection of behind-the-scenes images from her time shooting the two-part movie musical, including photos of her walking down the yellow brick road, posing with all of her costars, and soaring through the air on a broom. —Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Nov. 2025

In his own post from the concert, Cruz shared a few behind-the-scenes glimpses of the band before, during and after the show. —Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 20 Nov. 2025

Onstage, all this narrative retconning has a breezy behind-the-scenes cleverness, as if the story were being slyly fleshed out in the margins. —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 20 Nov. 2025

Here are 10 behind-the-scenes secrets from the making of the film, in honor of the 35th anniversary of its release. —Lori A Bashian, FOXNews.com, 16 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for behind-the-scenes

• catecholamines
• phenothiazines
• alkenes
• amines
• benzenes
• canteens
• convenes
• cosines
• cuisines
• eumenes
• hellenes
• latrines