cinema

noun

cin·​e·​ma ˈsi-nə-mə 

 British also  -ˌmä

1

a

: motion picture

—usually used attributively

b

: a motion-picture theater

2

a

: movies

especially : the film industry

b

: the art or technique of making motion pictures

Synonyms

• 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 festival featured 185 films from 66 countries this year, drawing 208,111 attendees across online screenings and in-person cinema experiences in Jakarta. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Oct. 2025

Although it is censored in China, the film has won Best Director for Lou at the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan, the most prestigious stage for Sinophone cinema. —Yangyang Cheng, NPR, 4 Oct. 2025

But that wasn’t the real pull of the cinema, at least not for the Fuchses. —David Kamp, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025

Since the early 20th century, moviegoers have been enjoying that salty, buttery treat at the cinema. —Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 3 Oct. 2025

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