Meaning & use
subtitle
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Meanings
nounusually plural
A line of translated or transcribed dialogue shown at the bottom of a film or video screen.
Grammar: Usually plural: watch with subtitles; one line is a single subtitle.
Patterns
- subtitles in something
- with subtitles
I watched the Korean series with English subtitles.
The subtitles lagged behind the actors by a few seconds.
She turned on the subtitles because the audio was unclear.
nouncountable
A second, explanatory title printed after or below the main title of a book, article or film.
Grammar: Takes an or the: the book's subtitle.
Patterns
- the subtitle of something
The novel's subtitle, A Story of the Sea, explained its theme.
The report had a long title and a short subtitle.
He chose the subtitle carefully so readers would know the book's focus.
verbtransitive
To add translated or transcribed text to a film or video.
Grammar: Takes an object: subtitle the film.
Patterns
- subtitle something in something
The studio decided to subtitle the film in twelve languages.
A volunteer team subtitled the lecture videos.
They subtitled the interview for deaf viewers.
Word forms
| plural | subtitles |
|---|---|
| third person singular | subtitles |
| past tense | subtitled |
| past participle | subtitled |
| -ing form | subtitling |
Common combinations
- English subtitles
- The documentary comes with English subtitles.
- turn on the subtitles
- Can you turn on the subtitles? I can't hear the dialogue.
- read the subtitles
- Reading the subtitles quickly takes some practice.
- subtitled version
- The subtitled version is available online.
- main title and subtitle
- The book's main title is short, but the subtitle is very long.
Synonyms and how they differ
- captions
- Captions usually include sound descriptions for deaf viewers, while subtitles generally just show the spoken words, often translated.
- surtitles
- Surtitles are shown above a stage in opera or theater, not on a screen.
- dubbing
- Dubbing replaces the original voices with a new recorded language rather than showing text.
- secondary title
- Secondary title is a plain description, while subtitle is the normal term for the added explanatory heading of a book.
Word family
- title noun
- the name of a work
- subtitled adjective
- having subtitles
- subtitling noun
- the work of adding subtitles
Commonly confused: subtitle or caption?
subtitle vs caption
A caption is text under a photo or a description of sounds on screen, and a subtitle shows the spoken words of a film.
Practice
I don't speak Italian, so I watched the film with English ___.
Choose one answer.
Subtitles are translated dialogue shown on screen. Titles and headlines are names of works or articles, not translated speech.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “subtitle”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.