screen time

noun

1

: the amount of time someone or something appears on screen in a movie or television show

… the widespread practice of product placement (in which companies buy screen time for their brands) …

—Celia Wren

Peck's role is only a cameo—23 minutes of screen time scattered through six and a half hours of edited film …

—John Skow

2

: time spent watching television, playing a video game, or using an electronic device with a screen (such as a smartphone or tablet)

Concerns about children spending too much time on digital devices—'screen time'—and becoming overdependent on these devices are very real for many teachers and parents.

—Nicky Hockly

If yours is like most American families with kids under age 5, your child probably watches between three and four hours of television a day. That's a lot of screen time …

—Debra Kent

Examples of screen time in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Parents say the rollout lacks transparency and goes against efforts to reduce screen time and improve in-person student interactions. —Caroline Beck, IndyStar, 7 Aug. 2025

One fix—in addition to reducing screen time—is simply reminding yourself to blink more. —Matt Fuchs, Time, 4 Aug. 2025

Future studies might track actual screen time with a device monitoring system to determine which kind of technology is being used and for how long. —Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 30 July 2025

Others who have screen time include Nancy Lopez, Nelly Korda, Charley Hull and Paige Spiranac, among many others. —Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1921, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for screen time

• airtime
• bedtime
• daytime
• downtime
• enzyme
• halftime
• lifetime
• longtime
• lunchtime
• mealtime
• meantime
• nighttime