Definition of GENRE (original) (raw)
1
: a category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content
a classic of the gothic novel genre
3
: painting that depicts scenes or events from everyday life usually realistically
Did you know?
Genre, as you might guess from the way it sounds, comes straight from French, a language based on Latin. It's closely related to genus, a word you may have encountered in biology class. Both words contain the gen- root because they indicate that everything in a particular category (a genre or a genus) belongs to the same "family" and thus has the same origins. So the main genres of classical music would include symphonies, sonatas, and opera, and the major genres of literature would include novels, short stories, poetry, and drama. But within the category of novels, we could also say that detective novels, sci-fi novels, romance novels, and young-adult novels are separate genres.
Synonyms
Examples of genre in a Sentence
In genre fiction there is an implied contract between writer and reader that justice of a kind will be exacted; "good" may not always triumph over "evil," but the distinction between the two must be honored. —
Joyce Carol Oates, New York Review of Books, 14 Aug. 2003 One of the first marketers outside of hip-hop to recognize the power of the genre … . he first sent models sashaying down the runway in 1991 in hip-hop chic, with sneakers and chunky gold chains … —Johnnie L. Roberts, Newsweek, 2 Sept. 2002 Even the local Catholic archdiocesan weekly, hardly an exciting genre, offers a more provocative sampling of opinion on its editorial page. —Walker Percy, "New Orleans Mon Amour," 1968, in Signposts in a Strange Land, 1991
This book is a classic of the mystery genre. the novel's hero is of a different genre than the traditional kind
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.
But Drake’s stronghold has also been endemic of another problem that hip-hop had been facing: as hip-hop turned 50 in 2023, the genre was in desperate need of an heir apparent. —Taylor Crumpton, TIME, 7 Feb. 2025 The coming-to-New-York genre is alive and well with two new books: Kay Sohini's graphic memoir This Beautiful, Ridiculous City and Gay Talese's A Town Without Time. —Brittney Melton, NPR, 7 Feb. 2025 Mistaken identity is a central conceit of the genre, and FastHorse takes this charade to another intellectual level. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2025 For a time, my mom and aunt’s tastes led me to believe that the best of the genre featured hyper-competent, successful, somewhat steely women, like FBI agent Gracie Hart or environmental lawyer Lucy Kelson, being slowly broken down by the promise of true and lasting love. —Emma Specter, Vogue, 7 Feb. 2025 See all Example Sentences for genre 
Word History
Etymology
French, from Middle French, kind, gender — more at gender
First Known Use
1770, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of genre was in 1770
Dictionary Entries Near genre
Cite this Entry
“Genre.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/genre. Accessed 12 Feb. 2025.
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Last Updated: 10 Feb 2025 - Updated example sentences
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