live-action

adjective

live-ac·​tion ˈlīv-ˈak-shən 

variants or less commonly live action

1

: of, relating to, or featuring cinematography that is not produced by animation

a live-action film

2

: done or performed live and usually in person

a live-action performance

live-action role-playing games

Examples of live-action in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That November, it was confirmed that a live-action movie was in development, produced by Nintendo and Sony, per a press release. —Christopher Rudolph, PEOPLE, 7 Dec. 2025

The Wimpy film series began with four live-action films from 2010 to 2017. —Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 5 Dec. 2025

Marvel is about to debut a different web-slinging hero in live-action. —Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Dec. 2025

Showrunners have confirmed that another spinoff is officially in development, with this one hinted at being live-action. —Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for live-action

• benefaction
• counteraction
• interaction
• liquefaction
• putrefaction
• rarefaction
• satisfaction
• stupefaction
• tumefaction
• abstraction
• attraction
• compaction

Kids Definition

live-action

adjective

live-ac·​tion ˈlīv-ˈak-shən 

1

: of, relating to, or featuring cinematography that is not produced by animation

2

: done or performed live and usually in person