Scene can also describe part of a movie or a play. Did the last scene make you laugh, cry, or fall asleep? There are lots of common phrases that use the word scene.

Understanding the Context

If you “make a scene,” you draw attention to yourself with some kind of outburst. If something happens “behind the scenes,” the public doesn't know about it. Our Personality Behind the Profile series, showcasing some of the most influential and popular social media profiles in the fire service looked at a dozen influencers. Robert Policht dives into how he ...

Key Insights

a part of a play or film in which the action stays in one place for a continuous period of time, or in which the same characters are involved. An act may consist of several scenes. Juliet dies in Act IV, Scene iii. The whole of the banquet scene is mimed. In the first scene, the camera moves slowly across the room.

Final Thoughts

You can describe an event that you see, or that is broadcast or shown in a picture, as a scene of a particular kind. There were emotional scenes as the refugees enjoyed their first breath of freedom. Scenes are the building blocks of a movie's narrative structure and serve to advance the plot, develop characters, and evoke emotion in the audience. They are essential for the overall pacing and flow of the film, and their successful execution can greatly contribute to a movie's success. the place where some action occurs or has occurred: the scene of the accident. a view or picture: an artist who paints scenes of the South.

an embarrassing display of anger, etc.: Don't make a scene; let's discuss this when we get home.