synopsis

play

noun syn·op·sis \sə-ˈnäp-səs\

Definition of synopsis

plural

synopses

play \-ˌsēz\

1 : a condensed statement or outline (as of a narrative or treatise) : abstract
2 : the abbreviated conjugation of a verb in one person only

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Examples of synopsis in a Sentence

I don't need to know every little plot twist; just give me a synopsis of the movie.

Recent Examples of synopsis from the Web

Synopsis: George Beard and Harold Hutchins are two overly imaginative pranksters who spend hours in a treehouse creating comic books.

— joey morona, cleveland.com, "Movie Minute: 'Wonder Woman' looks to do wonders at the box office", 1 June 2017
Sen. John Cornyn, the Senate's No. 2 Republican, had a surprising take on a synopsis of the GOP plan from Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.)

— paige winfield cunningham, Washington Post, "The Health 202: Meet the referee in the GOP effort to replace Obamacare", 30 May 2017
PERSPECTIVES Check out the synopsis of the movie, per IMDB.

— the tylt, AL.com, "Is the 'Baywatch' reboot worth seeing?", 29 May 2017
Smith attended the meeting to provide a synopsis of some of the bills enacted by the Legislature during its most recent session.

— karen caffarini, Post-Tribune, "With eye on day care center limits, Merrillville looks to Legislature", 26 May 2017
Synopsis: Hawai‘i Pono‘ī has been the state song since 1967 but has been around longer.

— anela texeira and ku’upua silva, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, "He aha ka waiwai o ke mele ‘Hawai‘i Pono‘ī’?", 17 Dec. 2016
According to a blog post on Netflix's site, they're specially formulated, 90-second synopses that are designed to give users a sense of the story, characters, and tone of a movie or show.

— chelsea stone, Teen Vogue, "Netflix Introduces Video Previews to Help You Decide What to Watch", 6 Dec. 2016
All of which will make some people wary of the movie, and a synopsis of the plot does sound like a parody of a downer.

— anthony lane, The New Yorker, "“Manchester by the Sea” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”", 28 Nov. 2016
Assistant displayed a web search result containing the synopsis for the new sci-fi show.

— brian x. chen, New York Times, "The New York Times", 18 Oct. 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'synopsis'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of synopsis

Late Latin, from Greek, literally, comprehensive view, from synopsesthai to be going to see together, from syn- + opsesthai to be going to see — more at optic

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First Known Use: 1603

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