cartoon

1 of 2

noun (1)

car·​toon kär-ˈtün 

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

cartooning

kär-ˈtü-niŋ 

noun

cartoonish

kär-ˈtü-nish 

adjective

cartoonishly adverb

cartoonist

kär-ˈtü-nist 

noun

cartoonlike

kär-ˈtün-ˌlīk 

adjective

cartoony

kär-ˈtü-nē 

adjective

cartoonist

2 of 2

noun (2)

car·​toon·​ist kär-ˈtü-nist 

plural -s

: one who draws cartoons

Synonyms of cartoon

Noun (1)

• sketch
• drawing
• portrait
• depiction
• illustration
• image

Examples of cartoon in a Sentence

Noun (1)

She enjoys reading the cartoons in the Sunday paper.

The kids are watching cartoons.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Writers tend to find this process—reducing a complex, nuanced work of art down to a tidy cartoon version of itself—excruciating. — Literary Hub, 15 July 2026

Appointment television has become a rarity for Gen Z, which was raised on on-demand cartoons and can’t even identify a channel guide. — Toni Fitzgerald, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026

His wartime propaganda cartoons, for example, included stereotypical and racist depictions of Japanese people. — Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 11 July 2026

When Robby went away to camp, Abel drew him cartoon postcards with silly, smiling animals. — Amy Weiss-Meyer, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Italian cartone pasteboard, cartoon, augmentative of carta leaf of paper — more at card entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1684, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing cartoon

• animated cartoon
• strip cartoon

Rhymes for cartoon

• attune
• baboon
• balloon
• bassoon
• buffoon
• cocoon
• festoon
• gaboon
• harpoon
• immune
• impugn
• jejune

Kids 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

: comic strip

3

: animated cartoon

cartoonist

-ˈtü-nəst 

noun

Etymology

Noun

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