plural cartoons
1
: a preparatory design, drawing, or painting (as for a fresco)
2
a
: a drawing intended as satire, caricature, or humor
a political cartoon
a cartoon drawing
b
: a group of drawings in narrative sequence : comic strip
3
: a video (such as a television show or movie) that is made from a series of drawings, computer graphics, or photographs of inanimate objects (such as puppets) and that simulates movement by slight progressive changes in each frame : animated cartoon
4
: a ludicrously simplistic, unrealistic, or one-dimensional portrayal or version
The film's villain is an entertaining cartoon.
cartoon
verb
cartoonishly
adverb
Examples of cartoon in a Sentence
She enjoys reading the cartoons in the Sunday paper.
The kids are watching cartoons.
Recent Examples on the Web
For a long time your political cartoons published in the editorial pages have irritated me.
—
Arkansas Online, 13 Jan. 2026
He was widely discouraged from a career in cartoons, and after a series of rejections, majored in economics.
—People Staff, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026
The cartoon snowman Olaf was performed by a visible onstage puppeteer standing behind the character.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Jan. 2026
The Al Hirschfeld Foundation, a nonprofit that supports cultural institutions in part by using income from exhibits of the late artist's iconic cartoon sketches, posted a photo of an Al Hirschfeld rendition of the Grateful Dead from 1995 as a way to memorialize Weir.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cartoon
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Arkansas Online, 13 Jan. 2026
He was widely discouraged from a career in cartoons, and after a series of rejections, majored in economics.
—People Staff, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026
The cartoon snowman Olaf was performed by a visible onstage puppeteer standing behind the character.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Jan. 2026
The Al Hirschfeld Foundation, a nonprofit that supports cultural institutions in part by using income from exhibits of the late artist's iconic cartoon sketches, posted a photo of an Al Hirschfeld rendition of the Grateful Dead from 1995 as a way to memorialize Weir.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cartoon
Cite this Entry
“Cartoon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cartoon. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cartoon
noun
car·toon
kär-ˈtün 
1
: a design, drawing, or painting made as a model for the finished work
2
a
: a drawing intended as a humorous comment on public affairs
b
3
Etymology
from Italian cartone "pasteboard, a sketch of a planned drawing or painting done on heavy paper," from carta "sheet of paper," from Latin charta "piece of papyrus" — related to card entry 3, carton
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