Definition of theatre Theatre

/θiˈʌtɚ/ - [theeuter] - the•a•tre

We found 12 definitions of theatre from 5 different sources.

Word comparison

British English

theatre - /θˈi‍ətɐ/

American English

theater - /θiˈʌtɚ/

What does theatre mean?

WordNet

Noun
theatre - the art of writing and producing plays
		dramaturgy, dramatic art, dramatics, theater
		communicating, communication something that is communicated by or to or between people or groups
		stage a section or portion of a journey or course; "then we embarked on the second stage of our Caribbean cruise"
		dramatic composition, dramatic work a play for performance on the stage or television or in a movie etc.
theatre - a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented; "the house was full"
		theater, house
		edifice, building a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place; "there was a three-story building on the corner"; "it was an imposing edifice"
		dramatic art, dramaturgy, dramatics, theater, theatre the art of writing and producing plays
		arena theater, theater in the round a theater arranged with seats around at least three sides of the stage
		ticket booth, ticket office, box office the office where tickets of admission are sold
		movie house, movie theater, movie theatre, picture palace, cinema a theater where films are shown
		dress circle, circle any circular or rotating mechanism; "the machine punched out metal circles"
		dinner theater, dinner theatre a theater at which dinner is included in the price of admission
		dressing room a room in which you can change clothes
		greenroom a backstage room in a theater where performers rest or have visitors
		home theater, home theatre television and video equipment designed to reproduce in the home the experience of being in a movie theater
		little theater, little theatre a small theater for experimental drama or collegiate or community groups
		vaudeville theater, vaudeville theatre, music hall a theater in which vaudeville is staged
		opera house, opera a building where musical dramas are performed
		orchestra seating on the main floor in a theater
		orchestra pit, pit lowered area in front of a stage where an orchestra accompanies the performers
		parquet seating on the main floor between the orchestra and the parquet circle
		parquet circle, parterre seating at the rear of the main floor (beneath the balconies)
		stage a section or portion of a journey or course; "then we embarked on the second stage of our Caribbean cruise"
		standing room room for passengers or spectators to stand; "there was standing room for thousands more people"
		theater stage, theatre stage a stage in a theater on which actors can perform
theatre - a region in which active military operations are in progress; "the army was in the field awaiting action"; "he served in the Vietnam theater for three years"
		field, field of operations, theater, theater of operations, theatre of operations
		region a knowledge domain that you are interested in or are communicating about; "it was a limited realm of discourse"; "here we enter the region of opinion"; "the realm of the occult"
		theater of war, theatre of war the entire land, sea, and air area that may become or is directly involved in war operations
		armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker"

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Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

theatre (n.)
An edifice in which dramatic performances or spectacles are exhibited for the amusement of spectators; anciently uncovered, except the stage, but in modern times roofed.
theatre (n.)
Any room adapted to the exhibition of any performances before an assembly, as public lectures, scholastic exercises, anatomical demonstrations, surgical operations, etc.
theatre (n.)
That which resembles a theater in form, use, or the like; a place rising by steps or gradations, like the seats of a theater.
theatre (n.)
A sphere or scheme of operation.
theatre (n.)
A place or region where great events are enacted; as, the theater of war.

Chambers DictionaryChamber's 20th Century Dictionary 📕

theatre
thē′a-tėr, n. a place where public representations, chiefly dramatic or musical, are seen, a play-house: any place rising by steps like the seats of a theatre: a building adapted for scholastic exercises, anatomical demonstrations, &c.: scene of action, field of operations: the drama, the stage.—adjs. Theat′ric, -al, relating or suitable to a theatre, or to actors: pompous: artificial, affected.—v.t. and v.i. Theat′ricalise, to adapt to dramatic representation: to make stagy.—ns. Theat′ricalism, Theatrical′ity, staginess, artificiality.—adv. Theat′rically, in a theatrical manner: in a manner suiting the stage.—n. Theat′ricalness.—n.pl. Theat′ricals, dramatic performances.—v.i. Theat′ricise, to play a part.—ns. Theat′ricism, theatricality, affectation, staginess; Theatromā′nia, a craze for play-going; Theat′rophone, a telephone connected with a theatre. [Gr. theatron—theaomai, I see.]

Wikipedia

Theatre (in British English and American English), or Theater (in American English only), has several meanings.

In American English, the word "theater" can mean either a place where films are shown (this is called a "cinema' in British English) or a place where live stage plays are performed. In British English, "theatre" means a place where live plays are performed.

Theatre or Theater can also mean the business of putting on plays. An actor might say "I am in the theatre business," or a writer might say "I write for the theatre," meaning that they write plays, rather than writing for movies or television shows.

Ancient Greece.

The first people to create plays were the Ancient Greeks, in about the year 500 A.D. They divided plays into two kinds: tragedy and comedy. This division is still used today. The most known Ancient Greek writers of plays are Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes; their plays are still played today.

These ancient Greek plays were performed outdoors in large amphitheatres for large crowds. These plays were very popular. There were contests among the playwrights (people who write plays are called playwrights) and the winner would win a prize of a goat, some money or maybe some wine.

Middle Ages.

In the Middle Ages, the Christian church began to use theatre as a way of telling the stories from the Bible to people who did not know how to read. They wrote Mystery Plays, where each part of the Bible story would be a play put on by a different group
warfare
In warfare, a theatre or theater is an area where there are many battles. Theatres are bordered by peaceful areas.

Some wars are fought in one theatre. Other wars are fought in many different theatres. There were many theatres in World War I and World War II. The Napoleonic wars were the first multi-theatre war in modern times.

The use of the word "theatre" for war was first seen in the book "On War" by Carl von Clausewitz.

Part of speech

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theatre, noun, singular of theatres.

Pronunciation

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