Definitions

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

  • noun Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK Alternative spelling of theater.
  • noun US Often used specifically of playhouses and drama, so as to distinguish from moviehouses and cinema.

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

  • noun a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
  • noun a region in which active military operations are in progress
  • noun the art of writing and producing plays

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From French théâtre.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word theatre.

Examples

  • I inquired where the theatre was to be found, and it was all true -- there _was_ a _theatre_.

    Olla Podrida Frederick Marryat 1820

  • I don't care if someone started doing theatre when he was in the fucking womb and spent his infant years doing small regional theatre gigs before being the Phantom of the Opera on Broadway at the tender age of five, the minute you become someone who makes hoards of preteens obsess over you, stay out of theatre*.

    Evil Beet Gossip 2010

  • I don't care if someone started doing theatre when he was in the fucking womb and spent his infant years doing small regional theatre gigs before being the Phantom of the Opera on Broadway at the tender age of five, the minute you become someone who makes hoards of preteens obsess over you, stay out of theatre*.

    Evil Beet Gossip 2010

  • The expression theatre of motor sport is bandied about but nowhere comes close to Monza when embracing all that is dramatic and passionate about motor racing.

    Chequered Conflict Maurice Hamilton 2008

  • One of the hardest things in theatre is keeping a performance fresh.

    October 2005 2005

  • The recent temporary eclipse of the glorious Berlin theatre is a complete reply in tragic mould to the suggestion of state interference in the theatre.

    The Future of the Theatre 1934

  • Coincidentally, I already use the spelling "theatre" - when I in theatre, it was an affectation we all used, and it stuck.

    in labor we trust 2005

  • But I think the thing everyone will be talking about when they walk out of the theatre is the action.

    Twilight Lexicon » Alphie’s Eclipse Review 2010

  • This theatre is my local theatre too, was just there last weekend.

    Moviegoer Stabbed in the Throat After Complaining About Cellphone User During Shutter Island Screening | /Film 2010

  • All it does in the theatre is allow some extra side-by-side dialogue and background shots.

    HDTV Becomes De Rigueur - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.