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

Kara Alaimo is a professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University and advises parents, students and teachers on how to manage screen time. —Kara Alaimo, CNN Money, 27 Mar. 2026

Australia in 2024 took the lead, becoming the first country to eject children under 16 from social media with the intention of protecting them from harmful content and excessive screen time. —ABC News, 27 Mar. 2026

Parents have complained, school districts have banned cellphones to cut down on screen time, and states have filed lawsuits citing social media addiction. —Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 26 Mar. 2026

Companies could also move to limit screen time, provide warnings to children who use the apps as well as their parents and introduce stricter age verification rules. —Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 26 Mar. 2026

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