animation
noun
an·i·ma·tion
ˌa-nə-ˈmā-shən 
plural animations
2
: a movie, scene, or sequence that simulates movement from a series of still frames (such as drawings, computer graphics, or photographs of inanimate objects moved incrementally)
His work often condenses stories of intricate subjects into brief looping animations.—
Paul Tough
Paul ToughThe work, titled Bigger Christmas Trees, was created on an iPad and features ten minutes of animation.—Julia Binswanger
Julia BinswangerAnd as the animation above shows, this tilt causes the Moon's shadow to miss the Earth.—Tom Yulsman
Tom Yulsman3
: the preparation of animation (as for animated cartoons, video games, commercials, etc.)
Examples of animation in a Sentence
The animation for the film took over two years to complete.
The studio used computer animation for some of the special effects.
The website has hundreds of animations you can download.
Recent Examples on the Web
Production is led by Filmosaurus Rex, BFilm, and Alkay Animation Prague, one of the Czech Republic’s leading animation studios.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 16 Feb. 2026
My request to the Birdo animation studio was that the movements have a certain weight and intensity to appear real, without the exaggerated distortions typical of conventional 2D animation.
—Kevin Giraud, Variety, 15 Feb. 2026
Students chosen by the school art committee can take classes including drawing, painting, video and animation, ceramics and fashion design.
—Claire Partain, Houston Chronicle, 13 Feb. 2026
But Chapek, sources said at the time, alienated members of Disney’s creative teams, particularly in its animation units, which saw their films shift toward streaming-first releases as Chapek reorganized the company around a central operating structure called DMED.
—Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for animation
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Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 16 Feb. 2026
My request to the Birdo animation studio was that the movements have a certain weight and intensity to appear real, without the exaggerated distortions typical of conventional 2D animation.
—Kevin Giraud, Variety, 15 Feb. 2026
Students chosen by the school art committee can take classes including drawing, painting, video and animation, ceramics and fashion design.
—Claire Partain, Houston Chronicle, 13 Feb. 2026
But Chapek, sources said at the time, alienated members of Disney’s creative teams, particularly in its animation units, which saw their films shift toward streaming-first releases as Chapek reorganized the company around a central operating structure called DMED.
—Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for animation
Cite this Entry
“Animation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/animation. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
animation
noun
an·i·ma·tion
ˌan-ə-ˈmā-shən
1
: the state of being animate or animated
2
a
: a film made by photographing a series of positions of objects (as puppets)
b
3
: the making of animations
Medical Definition
animation
noun
an·i·ma·tion
ˌan-ə-ˈmā-shən
: the state of being animate or animated see suspended animation
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