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

By his estimate, anime accounts for roughly 70% of Japan’s total box office, even though far more live-action films are made. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026

The first post-shutdown shocker arrived a bit later, with IGN exclusively revealing that Mass Effect isn't entirely dead, as the upcoming live-action TV show based on Mass Effect is still moving forward at Prime Video. — Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 22 Oct. 2026

Rideback produced the third highest grossing movie of 2025, the billion-dollar grossing live-action take of Disney classic Lilo & Stitch which is already getting a sequel. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026

From there, Knight continued to run Laika while also breaking out as an in-demand live-action director. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026

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