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Glite Dictionary
surtitle

surtitle

9.1
Translated words shown above the stage to help the audience follow an opera or musical
  • noun
  • /ˈsɜrˌtaɪl/
translation icon : supertítulo
  • There's a lot of visual information for the audience to scan, and this task is made difficult by having to keep an eye on the surtitles.
  • English surtitles

Examples

  • During the performance, the surtitles helped the audience follow the story in a foreign language.

  • The opera was performed in French, with surtitles projected above the stage for English-speaking audiences.

  • For the musical, the director decided to include surtitles to ensure everyone understood the dialogue.

Synonyms

supertitle
vssurtitle
  • Specialized
1 8.8

A translation of sung words shown above the stage so the audience can follow

has identical meaning but differs only in spelling form

Surface Forms

surtitle singular
surtitles plural

Morphology

surtitle = title (semi-transparent) = sur + title

While 'sur' and 'title' are clear components, the specific meaning of a translation projected above the stage is not directly derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Surtitle comes from French parts sur- meaning 'over' and title meaning 'heading'. So a surtitle is like an 'over-title', text shown above the stage, similar to a subtitle, to help the audience follow a foreign opera.