Cartoon

Pronunciation

• US IPA: /kɑɹˈtuːn/
• RP IPA: /kɑːˈtuːn/
• Rhymes: -uːn

Origin

From Italian cartone, augmentative of carta, from Latin carta.

Noun

1. (comics) A humorous drawing, often with a caption, or a strip of such drawings.
2. (comics) A drawing satirising current public figures.
3. (arts) An artist's preliminary sketch.
4. (animation) An animated piece of film which is often but not exclusively humorous.
• 12 July 2012, Sam Adams, AV Club Ice Age: Continental DriftThe matter of whether the world needs a fourth Ice Age movie pales beside the question of why there were three before it, but Continental Drift feels less like an extension of a theatrical franchise than an episode of a middling TV cartoon, lolling around on territory that’s already been settled.
5. A diagram in a scientific concept.

Synonyms

• (humorous drawing or strip) comic strip, strip cartoon
• (satire of public figures) caricature, political cartoon

Related terms

• cartoonist
• comic book
• funnies
• funny papers
• funny pages
• strip cartoon

Full definition of cartoon

Verb

1. (arts, comics, animation) To draw a cartoon.

Anagrams

• coranto