establishing shot

noun

: a usually long shot in film or video used at the beginning of a sequence to establish an overview of the scene that follows

Examples of establishing shot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Those establishing shots and blink-and-you-miss-it background details? — Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 10 Mar. 2026 Fade in on an establishing shot of Gare du Nord in Paris (which is in France). — John Kenney, New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2026 Even the big establishing shots hit harder, once they’re woven into that context. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 24 June 2026 Even the establishing shots start to evoke those time-lapse interstitials on reality shows. — Anna Gaca, Pitchfork, 30 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for establishing shot

Word History

First Known Use

1921, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of establishing shot was in 1921

Rhymes for establishing shot

See All Rhymes for establishing shot

Browse Nearby Words

establisher
establishing shot
establishment
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Establishing shot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/establishing%20shot. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All