Subtitle Meaning
/ˈsʌbtaɪtəl/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA heading below or after a title.
nounTextual versions of the dialogue in films (and similar media such as television or video games), usually displayed at the bottom of the screen.
Sentence Examples
The movie was in French but had several English subtitles.
A subtitle is a secondary title given to a book or a film.
The documentary has a helpful subtitle explaining the main theme.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The foreign film had clear English ____ at the bottom of the screen.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The foreign movie had a clear white ____ on the screen so that the audience could understand the story.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *upó Proto-Italic *supo Latin sub Latin sub-der. English sub- Etruscanbor.? Latin titulusbor. Old English titul Middle English title English title English subtitle From sub- + title.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Careful viewers have long observed that in the movies, one can not only watch but read cigarettes like subtitles — translating the action on the screen into another language which the camera registers but rarely foregrounds, a part of the thickness of the medium which is almost never brought into focus. […] The cigarette in the scene serves as a subtext, a mute caption or subtitle, sometimes accompanying, sometimes contradicting or diverting the explicit premise of the action or the open meaning of signs."
— 1995, Richard Klein, “Introduction”, in Cigarettes are sublime, Paperback edition, Durham: Duke University Press, published 1993, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 9:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The foreign film had clear English ____ at the bottom of the screen.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The foreign movie had a clear white ____ on the screen so that the audience could understand the story.