English Entertainment Words and Phrases
English Entertainment Words and Phrases
The world of entertainment is packed with imagination, sparkle, and thrill.
From the shining lights of Hollywood to the energetic music festivals, the entertainment field has its unique way of speaking.
I will take you on a journey through the fun and sometimes quirky world of English words and phrases used in entertainment.
Whether you dream of being an artist, are a fan, or just want to keep up with the latest, this guide will help you get to know show business like an expert.
Film and Television:
Lights, Camera, Action!
Let’s start our journey in the realm of moving pictures.
The film and television industry is rife with jargon that can leave outsiders scratching their heads.
Here are some essential terms:
- Blockbuster: A highly successful and big-budget film, often associated with summer releases and spectacular special effects.
- B-roll: Supplementary footage used to enrich the main shots in a film or TV show.
- Cliffhanger: A plot device that leaves the audience in suspense, often at the end of an episode or season.
- Diegetic sound: Sounds that originate from within the world of the film, such as character dialogue or ambient noises.
- Easter egg: A hidden reference or inside joke in a movie or TV show, often rewarding attentive viewers.
- Green light: The approval to proceed with a project, typically given by studio executives.
- Jump cut: An abrupt transition between two shots, often used for dramatic effect or to show the passage of time.
- MacGuffin: A plot device that drives the story forward but may have little actual importance to the narrative.
- Pilot: The first episode of a TV series, often used to pitch the show to networks.
- Spoiler: Information about a plot that may ruin the surprise or enjoyment for those who haven’t seen it yet.
Behind the Scenes: The magic of film and TV doesn’t just happen on screen.
Here’s some lingo from behind the camera:
- Dailies: Raw, unedited footage from a day’s shooting, reviewed by the director and producers.
- Gaffer: The chief electrician on a film set, responsible for lighting.
- Key grip: The person in charge of setting up and moving camera equipment.
- Martini shot: The final shot of the day on a film set.
- Practical effects: Special effects created physically on set, as opposed to digital effects added in post-production.
- Wrap: The end of a shooting day or the completion of a project.
Music:
Let’s face the music and dive into the world of melody and rhythm.
The music industry has its own beat when it comes to terminology:
- A&R: Artists and Repertoire, the division of a record label responsible for talent scouting and artistic development.
- Backbeat: The steady, regular beats in a song, typically on the second and fourth beats in 4/4 time.
- Crossfade: The technique of fading out one song while simultaneously fading in another.
- Drop: In electronic dance music, the moment when the full bass and rhythm track kicks in after a build-up.
- Earworm: A catchy song or tune that stubbornly sticks in one’s mind.
- Ghost note: A musical note played at a very low volume, often used in funk and jazz.
- Hook: A catchy musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that stands out and is easily remembered.
- Mixtape: Originally a compilation of songs recorded onto a cassette tape, now often used for a self-released album, especially in hip-hop.
- Sampling: The act of taking a portion of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or element in a new recording.
- Woodshedding: Intense practice or rehearsal in private, often used in jazz.
More vocabulary:
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- English Vocabulary: 40 Words Related to Hobbies & Leisure
Gig Talk: For those who love live music, here are some terms you might hear at a concert:
- Encore: Additional performance(s) after the scheduled end of a concert.
- Mosh pit: An area in front of the stage at a rock concert where audience members dance energetically, often pushing or slamming into each other.
- Rider: A set of requests or demands that a performer sets as criteria for performance, often including specific foods, drinks, or equipment.
- Set list: The list of songs a band or artist intends to play during a live performance.
- Sound check: A rehearsal before a live performance to test and adjust the sound system and equipment.
Theater:
All the world’s a stage, and these terms will help you understand the language of theater:
- Blocking: The precise movement and positioning of actors on a stage.
- Breaking the fourth wall: When an actor addresses the audience directly, acknowledging the fictional nature of the performance.
- Groundlings: In Shakespearean times, audience members who stood on the ground in front of the stage. Now often used to describe any audience in standing room.
- Method acting: A technique where actors fully immerse themselves in their characters, often staying in character even when not performing.
- Soliloquy: A dramatic device where a character speaks their thoughts aloud when alone, revealing their inner feelings to the audience.
- Strike: To dismantle and clear away a stage set.
Backstage Buzz: Here’s some lingo you might hear behind the curtain:
- Call time: The time at which performers are expected to arrive at the theater.
- Green room: A room in a theater where performers can relax when they’re not on stage.
- Prompt book: A copy of the script containing all the stage directions and cues.
- Tech rehearsal: A rehearsal that focuses on the technical aspects of a production, such as lighting and sound.
Digital Entertainment:
In the age of streaming and social media, new forms of entertainment have given rise to new terminology:
- Binge-watching: The practice of watching multiple episodes of a television program in rapid succession.
- Clickbait: Content whose main purpose is to attract attention and encourage visitors to click on a link to a particular web page.
- Influencer: A person with a large following on social media who can influence their audience’s purchasing decisions or opinions.
- Livestream: A live transmission of an event over the internet.
- Meme: An image, video, piece of text, etc., typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users.
- Podcast: A digital audio file made available on the internet for downloading to a computer or mobile device.
- Troll: A person who posts inflammatory or off-topic messages online with the primary intent of provoking an emotional response.
- Viral: Describing online content that quickly becomes very popular by being widely shared.
Gaming Lingo: Video games have become a major part of the entertainment landscape, with their own unique vocabulary:
- Easter egg: Similar to films, this refers to a hidden feature or inside joke in a video game.
- Lag: A delay between the player’s actions and the game’s response, often due to a poor internet connection.
- Loot box: A virtual item that can be redeemed to receive a random selection of further virtual items.
- Noob/Newbie: A newcomer to a game or a player displaying a lack of skill.
- Rage quit: Angrily abandoning a game, often due to frustration or poor performance.
Industry Talk:
The business side of entertainment has its own set of terms that are crucial for understanding how the industry operates:
- Box office: The place where tickets are sold for a film or performance, also used to refer to the commercial success of a film.
- Franchise: A collection of related works, such as films, TV shows, or books, that share a fictional universe.
- Intellectual Property (IP): Creative work that can be legally protected, such as characters, stories, or logos.
- Merchandising: The production and promotion of goods related to a film, TV show, or other form of entertainment.
- Nielson ratings: A system that measures the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States.
- Residuals: Ongoing compensation paid to actors, writers, directors, etc. for reruns, syndication, DVD release, or online streaming of their work.
- Royalties: A percentage of the earnings from a creative work paid to its creator.
Slang and Idioms:
The entertainment world is full of colorful expressions. Here are some popular slang terms and idioms:
- Break a leg: A way of wishing a performer good luck before they go on stage.
- Buzz: Excitement or interest surrounding a new release or performance.
- Flop: A failure, particularly a film or show that is unsuccessful commercially.
- Ham it up: To overact or exaggerate one’s performance.
- It’s a wrap: Signaling the end of filming or a project.
- Nailed it: Performed or executed something perfectly.
- Prima donna: A very temperamental or demanding person, often used in reference to a lead performer.
- Show stopper: A performance or act so striking that it interrupts the show with applause.
- Steal the show: To attract the most attention and praise in a performance.
- Two-bit: Cheap or worthless, often used to describe a low-quality performance or production.
Criticism and Reviews:
Critics and reviewers have their own set of terms to describe and evaluate entertainment:
- Cult classic: A movie, book, or album that was not initially successful but has since gained a highly devoted following.
- Derivative: Lacking originality; based too closely on an existing work.
- Deus ex machina: An unexpected power or event that saves a seemingly hopeless situation, often seen as a plot device.
- Genre-bending: A work that combines or defies traditional genres.
- Ham-fisted: Lacking subtlety; heavy-handed.
- Homage: A work that shows respect or dedication to another, often by imitation of style.
- Metacritic: A website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, and video games.
- Pacing: The speed at which a story unfolds.
- Pastiche: A work that imitates the style of another artist or genre.
- Rotten Tomatoes: A website that aggregates reviews from critics and provides a percentage score based on positive vs. negative reviews.
Conclusion:
The world of entertainment is vast and constantly evolving, just like its language.
From the sparkle of Hollywood to the backstage action of rock shows, and from the exciting realms of video games to the online spaces of streaming platforms, every section of the entertainment industry contributes to this colorful vocabulary.
Learning these terms and expressions not only enhances your enjoyment of the shows and movies you watch, but it also helps you grasp the complex journey that turns these creative ideas into reality.
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