Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A relatively long commercial in the format of a television program.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An especially long television commercial, typically between thirty minutes and one hour long, that is usually sold as a block to advertisers late at night to fund the operations of a television network.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a television commercial presented in the form of a short documentary

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[info(rmation) + (com)mercial.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Blend of information and commercial

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Examples

  • Everything is Terrible found this funny infomercial from a long gone company Zillionaire. com, pushing a site called dotplanet. com ( "the world's only lifestyle destination portal").

    Boing Boing 2008

  • The infomercial is another excuse for Kimmel to call in favors from his hot actress friends, like Heidi Klum and Zoe Saldana, but the best guest is Neil Patrick Harris, who pops up in a doctor's coat to explain the science of the diet while the Doogie Howser theme song plays in the background.

    Top Moments: The Bachelor's Love Woes and Glee's Dreamy First Kiss 2011

  • Even if the infomercial is a variation of what he's heard dozens of times before, believe it or not, there are people who haven't.

    The Obama Infomercial: How To Spend Their War Chest Before The Election Is Over 2009

  • The infomercial is the venue where particular breeds of manufacturers or service providers deploy – usually late at night or on weekend mornings – to convince an audience to buy into something that is unnecessary to the core needs of that audience.

    What Did We Learn From the Obama Infomercial? 2008

  • CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's known as the infomercial king.

    CNN Transcript Feb 25, 2008 2008

  • CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): He's known as the infomercial king.

    CNN Transcript Feb 24, 2008 2008

  • The infomercial is a tease for the movie, and will then become part of the final product when one of the characters sees it on television.

    NPR Topics: News 2010

  • The infomercial is a tease for the movie, and will then become part of the final product when one of the characters sees it on television.

    NPR Topics: News 2010

  • The infomercial is a tease for the movie, and will then become part of the final product when one of the characters sees it on television.

    NPR Topics: News 2010

  • TV pitchman Kevin Trudeau, known as the infomercial king and best-selling author, was ordered by a federal judge to serve 30 days in prison and must turn himself in tomorrow.

    European Tribune European Tribune 2010

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