diorama

noun

di·​ora·​ma ˌdī-ə-ˈra-mə  -ˈrä- 

1

: a scenic representation in which a partly translucent painting is seen from a distance through an opening

2

a

: a scenic representation in which sculptured figures and lifelike details are displayed usually in miniature so as to blend indistinguishably with a realistic painted background

b

: a life-size exhibit (as of a wildlife specimen or scene) with realistic natural surroundings and a painted background

dioramic

ˌdī-ə-ˈra-mik 

-ˈrä-

adjective

Examples of diorama in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Earlier, life-sized Wicked dioramas lined the entrance to the CCIB auditorium here as plumes of smoke, multi-colored bubbles and streamer cannons celebrated the film adaptation of the Broadway musical phenomenon inside the auditorium. —Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 18 June 2024

His plays, however, can turn stuffy and melodramatic in modern productions: living museum dioramas in which women in long skirts and men in frock coats howl about syphilis and scandal. —Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2024

Raised in Manhattan’s Washington Heights, Flack was interested in art from the age of five, when a teacher charged her class with making dioramas. —News Desk, Artforum, 2 July 2024

Similarly, fourth-grade students were instructed to create a diorama of the Spanish missions established throughout the state from the late 1700s. —Anne Wallentine, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

French, from dia- + -orama (as in panorama, from English)

First Known Use

1823, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

diorama

noun

di·​o·​rama

ˌdī-ə-ˈram-ə,

-ˈräm-

: a scenic representation in which lifelike sculptured figures and surrounding details are realistically set against a painted background