scene

 
Pronunciation: /siːn/

noun

  • 1the place where an incident in real life or fiction occurs or occurred: the emergency team were among the first on the scene relatives left floral tributes at the scene of the crash
  • a place or setting regarded as having a particular character or making a particular impression: a scene of carnage
  • a landscape: thick snow had turned the scene outside into a picture postcard
  • an incident of a specified nature: there had already been some scenes of violence
  • a representation of an incident, or the incident itself: scenes of 1930s America
  • [with adjective or noun modifier] a specified area of activity or interest: one of the biggest draws on the Irish music scene
  • (usually the scene) informal a social environment frequented predominantly by homosexuals: I don’t go out into the scene now
  • [usually in singular] a public display of emotion or anger: she was loath to make a scene in the office
  • 2a sequence of continuous action in a play, film, opera, or book: a scene from Tarantino’s latest movie
  • a subdivision of an act of a play in which the time is continuous and the setting fixed and which does not usually involve a change of characters: beginning at Act One, Scene One
  • [mass noun, usually as modifier] the pieces of scenery used in a play or opera: scene changes

Phrases

behind the scenes

out of sight of the public at a theatre or organization: behind the scenes at London Zoo
secretly: diplomatic manoeuvres going on behind the scenes

change of scene

a move to different surroundings: he decided he needed a change of scene

come (or appear or arrive) on the scene

arrive; appear: the family had gone by the time I came on the scene

hit (or US make) the scene

informal arrive; appear.

not one's scene

informal not something one enjoys or is interested in: as for that job you mention, not my scene

set the scene

describe a place or situation in which something is about to happen: he set the scene by describing the general vicinity and its history
create the conditions for a future event: she jumped a flawless round and set the scene for a hair-raising jump-off

Origin:

mid 16th century (denoting a subdivision of a play, or (a piece of) stage scenery): from Latin scena, from Greek skēnē 'tent, stage'