screenplay

noun

screen·​play ˈskrēn-ˌplā 

: the script and often shooting directions of a story prepared for movie production

Synonyms of screenplay

• script

Examples of screenplay in a Sentence

an award for best screenplay

each actor will be given a copy of the screenplay to study

Recent Examples on the Web

Brass is best-known for his 1979 feature Caligula, an erotic period epic about the notorious Roman emperor, adapted from a screenplay written by Gore Vidal and starring Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren, Peter O’Toole and John Gielgud. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 29 June 2026

Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith’s screenplay is littered with exaggerated stereotypes just waiting to be boisterously subverted. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 June 2026

Produced by Ermanno Donati and Luigi Carpentieri, it is freely inspired by Sergio Donati’s the novel ‘Il Sepolcro di Carta’, with a screenplay by Brass, Francesco Longo and Pierre Lévy-Corti. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 29 June 2026

The screenplay is by Tinto Brass, Francesco Longo and Pierre Lévy-Corti. — Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 29 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1920, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for screenplay

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• assez
• astray
• aue
• away
• ballet
• belay
• beltway

Kids Definition

screenplay

noun

screen·​play ˈskrēn-ˌplā 

: the written form of a story prepared for film production