ENTERTAINMENT • FREE TRANSLATOR.ORG • Definition of Entertainment

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/ˌɛntərtˈeɪnmənt/ /ˌɛnərtˈeɪnmənt/ Listen

noun

Entertainment n.

1.

The act of receiving as host, or of amusing, admitting, or cherishing; hospitable reception; also, reception or treatment, in general. "The entertainment of Christ by faith." "The sincere entertainment and practice of the precepts of the gospel."

2.

That which entertains, or with which one is entertained; as:

(a)

Hospitality; hospitable provision for the wants of a guest; especially, provision for the table; a hospitable repast; a feast; a formal or elegant meal.

(b)

That which engages the attention agreeably, amuses or diverts, whether in private, as by conversation, etc., or in public, by performances of some kind; amusement. "Theatrical entertainments conducted with greater elegance and refinement."

3.

Admission into service; service. "Some band of strangers in the adversary's entertainment."

4.

Payment of soldiers or servants; wages. (Obs.) "The entertainment of the general upon his first arrival was but six shillings and eight pence."

Synonyms: Amusement; diversion; recreation; pastime; sport; feast; banquet; repast; carousal.

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Etymology of 'Entertainment'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Entertainment" Quotes from Famous Books

... she was unconscious of either envy or inferiority, and Leslie at a loss because her usual social chatter was as foreign here as a strange tongue would be. But no type is quicker to grasp upon amusement, and to appreciate the amuser, than Leslie's, unable to amuse itself, and skilled in seeking for entertainment. She was too shy to ask Norma to imitate her aunt again, but her stiffness relaxed, and she asked Norma if it was not great "fun" to sell things—especially at Christmas, for instance. Norma asked in turn if Mr. Liggett was not Leslie's uncle, and said ...

— The Beloved Woman • Kathleen Norris

... company—but he realised that in time they would arrive at the parting of the ways, and it was for him to make the first step in that direction; in such homes as "Monte Carlo" he must in future find society and entertainment. ...

— The Road to Mandalay - A Tale of Burma • B. M. Croker

... pride of Nelly Northover's heart. Three quarters of an acre extended here behind the inn, and she had erected swings for the children and laid a croquet lawn for those who enjoyed that pastime. Lawn tennis she would not permit, out of respect for her herbaceous border which surrounded the place of entertainment. At one corner was a large summer-house in which her famous teas were generally taken. The charge was one shilling, and being of generous disposition, Mrs. Northover provided for that figure ...

— The Spinners • Eden Phillpotts

... very long hour, for it had grown very silent all around me—I stood, singularly enough, outside No. 11 Tomtegaden. After I had stood and collected my wits for a moment and wondered thereat, I went through the door for the second time, right into the "Entertainment and lodgings for travellers." Here I asked for shelter and was immediately supplied with ...

— Hunger • Knut Hamsun

... disease, and vice. Among unskilled laborers, poverty and the large number of children often prevent the young from securing a helpful amount of education. The lack of wholesome and inexpensive recreation, and the existence of costly and injurious forms of entertainment, encourage unwise expenditure of savings, and, to that extent, may influence dependency. Child labor and the employment of mothers in industry prevent a normal family life, and may be intimately associated with illiteracy, low ...

— Problems in American Democracy • Thames Ross Williamson

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