genre
ZHAHN-ruh
/ˈʒɒ̃.rə/
A category or class of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content.
Refers to broad taxonomy in art and literature based on shared conventions rather than individual quality.
The story behind the word. Borrowed from French in the early 19th century, 'genre' stems directly from Latin 'genus', meaning birth, kind, or origin. It entered English aesthetics to give critics a precise word for categorizing paintings and literature by shared stylistic conventions.
Word relationships
- category: 'Category' is a general grouping term, whereas 'genre' specifically applies to artistic or literary works.
- style: 'Style' refers to the individual technique of expression, while 'genre' is the broader classification.
- hybrid: A hybrid blends categories rather than belonging strictly to one distinct genre.
Commonly confused with
- medium: A medium is the physical or technical channel (e.g., film, print), whereas genre is the thematic category.
Word family
- genre-crossing (adjective): Spanning multiple genres.
Collocations
- literary genre
- defy genre
- genre fiction
- blend genres
Idioms & expressions
- genre-bending
Example sentences
- "Science fiction evolved from a fringe niche into a dominant literary genre of the twentieth century." Literary Criticism
- "The novel as a genre was still finding its form in eighteenth-century England." Classic Literature
Memory hook
Think of 'GENeral REgion' — a genre sets the general area where a work belongs. A genre is a general bucket for art.
When not to use
Do not use 'genre' to describe the physical format of a book (e.g., paperback vs. hardback).
Fun facts
- In painting history, 'genre painting' originally referred strictly to scenes of everyday peasant life, not broad categories.
Explore more words
trope, composition, cinematic, classical, avant-garde, aesthetic
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