Whether it’s a clown at a children’s party, a Broadway show, or your friends fighting over the last potato chip, entertainment is something that keeps us amused, distracted, or engaged. But what’s considered entertainment can change over time and across different media. To help you find the right words to describe it, this article outlines a variety of definitions and colloquial uses of entertainment. You can also click on the buttons at the top of the page to see related words and examples.

Entertaiment is audience-centered commercial culture that holds individuals amused, engaged, and diverted. It includes movies, television, books, music, and new media, among other things.