ENGLISH
REFERENCE

show

n. countable
A1 Beginner Oxford US //ˈʃoʊ// UK //ʃˈəʊ// show Archaic General-service Informal Slang

n. a performance or a program on television or at a theater. You use this when you talk about entertainment that people watch.

n. a theatrical performance, television program, or public exhibition. Often used to refer to a structured entertainment event rather than a spontaneous one.


SIMPLE

We are watching a comedy show tonight.

CONTEXTUAL

The local museum is hosting a new art show featuring paintings from local students this weekend.

COMPLEX

While the lead actor's performance was technically proficient, the rest of the show suffered from poor pacing and a script that failed to engage the audience's emotions.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology 1

From Middle English schewen, from Old English scēawian (“to look, look at, exhibit, display”), from Proto-West Germanic skauwōn, from Proto-Germanic skawwōną (“to look, see”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- (“to heed, look, feel, take note of”); see haw, gaum, caveat, caution. Cognate with Scots shaw (“to show”), Dutch schouwen (“to inspect, view”), German schauen (“to see, behold”), Danish skue (“to behold”). Related to sheen. Wider cognates include Ancient Greek κῦδος (kûdos), Latin caveō whence English caution and caveat, Sanskrit कवि (kaví, “seer, prophet, bard”), Proto-Slavic *čuti (whence Russian чу́ять (čújatʹ) and many more).

Etymology 2

From Middle English schewe, from the verb (schewen).

Etymology 3

Variant of shove, itself a variant of shive.

Usage

Commonly used with the verbs 'put on', 'watch', or 'see'.

Idioms26 entries

© 2026 English Reference