subtitle

S1U1B3T1I1T1L1E1
/ˈsʌbtaɪtəl/

noun

A heading below or after a title.

Similar
CommonScrabble 10

Meanings

nounsubtitle (plural subtitles)

plural subtitles

  1. authorshipA heading below or after a title.
  2. broadcastingTextual versions of the dialogue in films (and similar media such as television or video games), usually displayed at the bottom of the screen.
    1 more example

    Careful viewers have long observed that in the movies, one can not only watch but read cigarettes like subtitles — translating the action on the screen into another language which the camera registers but rarely foregrounds, a part of the thickness of the medium which is almost never brought into focus. […] The cigarette in the scene serves as a subtext, a mute caption or subtitle, sometimes accompanying, sometimes contradicting or diverting the explicit premise of the action or the open meaning of signs.

    1995, Richard Klein, “Introduction”, in Cigarettes are sublime, Paperback edition, Durham: Duke University Press, published 1993, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 9
verbsubtitle (third-person singular simple present subtitles, present participle subtitling, simple past and past participle subtitled)

present singular third person subtitles · participle present subtitling · participle past subtitled · past subtitled

  1. To create subtitles for the dialogue in a film.

Synonyms & antonyms

nountranslation of foreign dialogue of a movie or TV program; usually displayed at the bottom of the screen

Similar
Broader
translationinterlingual renditionrendering

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*upó
  2. Proto-Italic*supo
  3. Latinsub
  4. Latinsub-
  5. Englishsub-
  6. Latintitulus
  7. Old Englishtitul
  8. Middle Englishtitle
  9. Englishtitle
  10. Englishsubtitle

From sub- + title.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Afrikaans onderskrifte, onderskrift
  • onderskriftetextual versions of the dialog in films
  • onderskrifttextual versions of the dialog in films
Arabic عَنَاوِين فَرْعِيَّة, عُنْوَان فَرْعِيّ
  • عَنَاوِين فَرْعِيَّة (ʕanāwīn farʕiyya)heading below a title
  • عُنْوَان فَرْعِيّ (ʕunwān farʕiyy)heading below a title
  • تَرْجَمَة (tarjama)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • سَتْرَجَة (satraja)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • تَرْجَمَ (tarjama)to create subtitles
Basque azpititulu
  • azpititulutextual versions of the dialog in films
Bengali উপাখ্যা
  • উপাখ্যা (upakkha)textual versions of the dialog in films
Bulgarian подзагла́вие, субти́три
  • подзагла́вие (podzaglávie)heading below a title
  • субти́три (subtítri)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • на́дписи (nádpisi)textual versions of the dialog in films
Catalan subtítol, subtítol
  • subtítolheading below a title
  • subtítoltextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtítolstextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtitularto create subtitles
Chinese Cantonese 字幕
  • 字幕 (zi⁶ mok⁶)textual versions of the dialog in films
Chinese Mandarin 副標題 /副标题, 字幕
  • 副標題 /副标题 (fù biāotí)heading below a title
  • 字幕 (zìmù)textual versions of the dialog in films
Czech podtitul, titulek
  • podtitulheading below a title
  • titulektextual versions of the dialog in films
  • titulkytextual versions of the dialog in films
  • otitulkovatto create subtitles
Danish undertekst, undertekst
  • undertekstheading below a title
  • underteksttextual versions of the dialog in films
Dutch ondertiteling, ondertitel
  • ondertitelingtextual versions of the dialog in films
  • ondertiteltextual versions of the dialog in films
Esperanto subteksto, subtitulo
  • subtekstoheading below a title
  • subtitulotextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtitulojtextual versions of the dialog in films
Estonian alapealkiri, subtiiter
  • alapealkiriheading below a title
  • subtiitertextual versions of the dialog in films
Finnish alaotsikko, tekstitys
  • alaotsikkoheading below a title
  • tekstitystextual versions of the dialog in films
  • tekstittääto create subtitles
French sous-titre, sous-titre
  • sous-titreheading below a title
  • sous-titretextual versions of the dialog in films
  • sous-titrerto create subtitles
German Untertitel, Untertitel
  • Untertitelheading below a title
  • Untertiteltextual versions of the dialog in films
  • untertitelnto create subtitles
Greek υπότιτλος, υπότιτλος
  • υπότιτλος (ypótitlos)heading below a title
  • υπότιτλος (ypótitlos)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • υπότιτλοι (ypótitloi)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • υποτιτλίζω (ypotitlízo)to create subtitles
Hebrew כּוֹתֶרֶת מִשְׁנֶה, כְּתוּבִית
  • כּוֹתֶרֶת מִשְׁנֶהheading below a title
  • כְּתוּבִית (ktuvít)textual versions of the dialog in films
Hindi उपशीर्षक, सबटाइटल
  • उपशीर्षक (upśīrṣak)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • सबटाइटल (sabṭāiṭal)textual versions of the dialog in films
Hungarian alcím, felirat
  • alcímheading below a title
  • felirattextual versions of the dialog in films
Icelandic undirtitill, undirfyrirsögn
  • undirtitillheading below a title
  • undirfyrirsögnheading below a title
  • aukafyrirsögnheading below a title
  • textitextual versions of the dialog in films
  • kvikmyndatextitextual versions of the dialog in films
  • textato create subtitles
Indonesian judul bawah, subjudul
  • judul bawahheading below a title
  • subjudulheading below a title
  • tekstextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subjudultextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtiteltextual versions of the dialog in films
  • takarirtextual versions of the dialog in films
  • sulih tekstextual versions of the dialog in films
Irish fotheideal, fotheideal
  • fotheidealheading below a title
  • fotheidealtextual versions of the dialog in films
  • fotheidiltextual versions of the dialog in films
  • fotheidealaighto create subtitles
Italian sottotitolo, sottotitolo
  • sottotitoloheading below a title
  • sottotitolotextual versions of the dialog in films
  • sottotitolareto create subtitles
Japanese 字幕
  • 字幕 (jimaku)textual versions of the dialog in films
Korean 자막
  • 자막 (jamak)textual versions of the dialog in films
Latvian subtītrs, subtītri
  • subtītrstextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtītritextual versions of the dialog in films
Lithuanian paantraštė, subtitras
  • paantraštėheading below a title
  • subtitrastextual versions of the dialog in films
Malay subtajuk, sari kata
  • subtajukheading below a title
  • sari katatextual versions of the dialog in films
Māori kupu hauraro, kupu hauraro
  • kupu hauraroheading below a title
  • kupu haurarotextual versions of the dialog in films
Norwegian Bokmål undertittel, undertekst
  • undertittelheading below a title
  • underteksttextual versions of the dialog in films
Polish podtytuł, napis
  • podtytułheading below a title
  • napistextual versions of the dialog in films
  • napisytextual versions of the dialog in films
Portuguese subtítulo, legenda
  • subtítuloheading below a title
  • legendatextual versions of the dialog in films
  • legendarto create subtitles
Romanian subtitlu
  • subtitlutextual versions of the dialog in films
Russian подзаголо́вок, субти́тр
  • подзаголо́вок (podzagolóvok)heading below a title
  • субти́тр (subtítr)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • субти́тры (subtítry)textual versions of the dialog in films
Scottish Gaelic fo-thiotal, fo-thiotal
  • fo-thiotalheading below a title
  • fo-thiotaltextual versions of the dialog in films
Slovak titulok, titulky
  • tituloktextual versions of the dialog in films
  • titulkytextual versions of the dialog in films
Spanish subtítulo, título seccional / menor
  • subtítuloheading below a title
  • título seccional / menorheading below a title
  • subtítulotextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtítulostextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtitularto create subtitles
Swahili mada ndogo
  • mada ndogotextual versions of the dialog in films
Swedish undertitel, textremsa
  • undertitelheading below a title
  • textremsatextual versions of the dialog in films
  • undertexttextual versions of the dialog in films
  • textato create subtitles
Tamil துணை தலைப்ப
  • துணை தலைப்ப (tuṇai talaippa)heading below a title
Thai บทบรรยายใต้ภาพ
  • บทบรรยายใต้ภาพ (bòt-ban-yaai-dtâi-pâap)textual versions of the dialog in films
Turkish altyazı
  • altyazıtextual versions of the dialog in films
Ukrainian підзаголо́вок, субти́три
  • підзаголо́вок (pidzaholóvok)heading below a title
  • субти́три (subtýtry)textual versions of the dialog in films
Urdu ذَیلِی عُنْوَان, سَب ٹائِٹَل
  • ذَیلِی عُنْوَان (zailī 'unvān)textual versions of the dialog in films
  • سَب ٹائِٹَل (sab ṭāiṭal)textual versions of the dialog in films
Vietnamese phụ đề, sub
  • phụ đềtextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subtextual versions of the dialog in films
  • subto create subtitles
Welsh isteitl, isteitl
  • isteitlheading below a title
  • isteitltextual versions of the dialog in films
  • isteitloto create subtitles
Yiddish אונטערטיטלען
  • אונטערטיטלען (untertitlen)textual versions of the dialog in films
Cite this entry
APA

subtitle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subtitle

MLA

“subtitle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subtitle. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “subtitle,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subtitle.

Source: subtitle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.