theater
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈθi(ə)tɚ/
ipa: /ˈθɪə.tɚ/
other: [ˈθi(ə)ɾɚ]
ipa: /ˈθi(ə)tɚ/
ipa: /ˈθi.eɪ.tɚ/
ipa: /ˈθiː.ə.tə/
ipa: /ˈθɪə.tə/
ipa: /θiˈɛt.ə/
ipa: /θiˈeɪ.tə/
ipa: /ˈθiətə/
ipa: [ˈθiə̯tɜ]
ipa: [ˈθiə̯ɾɜ]
note: Indic
ipa: /t̪iˈeʈə(ɾ)/
note: Indic
ipa: /ˈt̪eʈə(ɾ)/
rhymes: (US, Canada, Southern American English) -iːtə(ɹ)
rhymes: -iːətə(ɹ)
rhymes: (UK, somewhat dated) -ɛtə
rhymes: (South Asia) -eɪtə
Forms: form: theaters
form: theatre
Etymology: Inherited from Middle English theater, theatre, from Old French theatre, from Latin theatrum, from Ancient Greek θέατρον (théatron, “a place for viewing”), from θεάομαι (theáomai, “to see", "to watch", "to observe”). Doublet of tiatr.
Senses: synonyms: playhouse
glosses: A place or building, consisting of a stage and seating, in which an audience gathers to watch plays, musical performances, public ceremonies, and so on.
examples: text: His grandfather was in the Pacific theater during the war.
text: Percy had been too big for the town since he got back from the war. He served in the Pacific theater, behind the lines keeping up the supply chain.
ref: 2019, Colson Whitehead, The Nickel Boys, Fleet, page 69:
glosses: A region where a particular action takes place; a specific field of action, usually with reference to war.
glosses: A lecture theatre.
examples: text: This man is about to die, get him into theater at once!
topics: medicine
sciences
glosses: An operating theatre or locale for human experimentation.
examples: text: We sat in the back row of the theater and threw popcorn at the screen.
glosses: A cinema.
examples: text: I worked in theater for twenty-five years.
synonyms: fabulous invalid
glosses: Drama or performance as a profession or art form.
glosses: Any place rising by steps like the seats of a theater.
examples: text: The Senate confirmation hearings were just theater.
text: security theater; hygiene theater
text: ACTA proponents rely on claims of a growing piracy and counterfeiting threat. In the absence of credible evidence of the threat or that the measures in ACTA will reduce the threat, ACTA is no more than enforcement theater.
ref: 2012, Andrew Rens, “Enforcement Theater: The Enforcement Agenda and the Institutionalization of Enforcement Theater in the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement”, in Suffolk Transnational Law Review, volume 35:
qualifier: often following a noun used attributively
glosses: A conspicuous but unproductive display of action.
Derived terms: word: theaterette
word: theaterless
word: theaterwide
word: theatral
word: theatric
word: theatrical
word: theatrically
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: atmospheric theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: boat-in theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: dinner theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: dubbing theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: guerrilla theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: home theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: hygiene theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: illegitimate theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: kabuki theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: legitimate theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: movie theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: moving-picture theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: musical theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: security theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: senior theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: shout fire in a crowded theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: shouting fire in a crowded theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: stock theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: street theater
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theatergoer
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theatergoing
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater in the round
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater-in-the-round
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater kid
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theaterland
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of cruelty
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of fact
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of panic
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of protest
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of the absurd
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of the mind
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of the streets
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theater of war
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theatremaker
sense: Compound words and expressions
word: theatermaker