scene

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

• noun Something seen by a viewer; a view or prospect.
• noun The place where an action or event occurs.
• noun The place in which the action of a play, movie, novel, or other narrative occurs; a setting.
• noun A subdivision of an act in a dramatic presentation in which the setting is fixed and the time continuous.
• noun A shot or series of shots in a movie constituting a unit of continuous related action.
• noun The scenery and properties for a dramatic presentation.
• noun A theater stage.
• noun A real or fictitious episode, especially when described.
• noun A public display of passion or temper.
• noun A sphere of activity.
• noun Slang A situation or set of circumstances.
• idiom (behind the scenes) Backstage.
• idiom (behind the scenes) Out of public view; in secret.

from The Century Dictionary.

• To exhibit; make an exhibition or scene of; display; set out.
• noun A stage; the place where dramatic pieces and other shows are performed or exhibited; that part of a theater in which the acting is done.
• noun The place in which the action of a play is supposed to occur; the place represented by the stage and its painted slides, hangings, etc.; the surroundings amid which anything is set before the imagination.
• noun The place where anything is done or takes place: as, the scene of one's labors; the scene of the catastrophe.
• noun One of the painted slides, hangings, etc., used on the stage of a theater to give an appearance of reality to the action of a play.
• noun A division of a play or of an act of a play, generally so much as represents what passes between the same persons in the same place; also, some particular incident or situation represented in the course of a play.
• noun One of a series of events, actions, or situations contributing to form a complete view or spectacle or a written representation or description: as, scenes from the life of Buddha; scenes and sketches of camp life.
• noun Any exhibition, display, or demonstration; especially, an exhibition of strong feeling, usually of a pathetic or passionate character, between two or more persons.
• noun A view; a landscape; scenery.
• noun = Syn.8. Prospect, Landscape, etc. See view.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• transitive verb obsolete To exhibit as a scene; to make a scene of; to display.
• noun The structure on which a spectacle or play is exhibited; the part of a theater in which the acting is done, with its adjuncts and decorations; the stage.
• noun The decorations and fittings of a stage, representing the place in which the action is supposed to go on; one of the slides, or other devices, used to give an appearance of reality to the action of a play.
• noun So much of a play as passes without change of locality or time, or important change of character; hence, a subdivision of an act; a separate portion of a play, subordinate to the act, but differently determined in different plays.
• noun The place, time, circumstance, etc., in which anything occurs, or in which the action of a story, play, or the like, is laid; surroundings amid which anything is set before the imagination; place of occurrence, exhibition, or action.
• noun An assemblage of objects presented to the view at once; a series of actions and events exhibited in their connection; a spectacle; a show; an exhibition; a view.
• noun A landscape, or part of a landscape; scenery.
• noun An exhibition of passionate or strong feeling before others; often, an artifical or affected action, or course of action, done for effect; a theatrical display.
• noun behind the scenery of a theater; out of the view of the audience, but in sight of the actors, machinery, etc.; hence, conversant with the hidden motives and agencies of what appears to public view.

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

• noun The location of an event that attracts attention.
• noun theater The structure on which a spectacle or play is exhibited; the part of a theater in which the acting is done, with its adjuncts and decorations; the stage.
• noun The decorations and fittings of a stage, representing the place in which the action is supposed to go on; one of the slides, or other devices, used to give an appearance of reality to the action of a play; as, to paint scenes; to shift the scenes; to go behind the scenes.
• noun So much of a play as passes without change of locality or time, or important change of character; hence, a subdivision of an act; a separate portion of a play, subordinate to the act, but differently determined in different plays; as, an act of four scenes.
• noun The place, time, circumstance, etc., in which anything occurs, or in which the action of a story, play, or the like, is laid; surroundings amid which anything is set before the imagination; place of occurrence, exhibition, or action.
• noun An assemblage of objects presented to the view at once; a series of actions and events exhibited in their connection; a spectacle; a show; an exhibition; a view.
• noun A landscape, or part of a landscape; scenery.
• noun An exhibition of passionate or strong feeling before others; often, an artificial or affected action, or course of action, done for effect; a theatrical display.
• noun An element of fiction writing.
• noun A social environment consisting of a large informal, vague group of people with a uniting interest; their sphere of activity.
• verb To exhibit as a scene; to make a scene of; to display.

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

• noun a situation treated as an observable object
• noun the context and environment in which something is set
• noun an incident (real or imaginary)