plural cartoons
1
: a preparatory design, drawing, or painting (as for a fresco)
2
a
: a drawing intended as satire, caricature, or humor
a political cartoon
a cartoon drawing
b
: a group of drawings in narrative sequence : comic strip
3
: a video (such as a television show or movie) that is made from a series of drawings, computer graphics, or photographs of inanimate objects (such as puppets) and that simulates movement by slight progressive changes in each frame : animated cartoon
4
: a ludicrously simplistic, unrealistic, or one-dimensional portrayal or version
The film's villain is an entertaining cartoon.
cartoon
verb
cartoonishly
adverb
Examples of cartoon in a Sentence
She enjoys reading the cartoons in the Sunday paper.
The kids are watching cartoons.
Recent Examples on the Web
Some passed the Star & Garter bar, with its cartoon in the window stating ‘Thistle Be Our Season’.
—
Michael Walker, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
The cartoon imagines that the audience would revel in punching down.
—Yii-Jan Lin, The Conversation, 11 Apr. 2025
The stars of the kids' TV show, about cartoon characters who come to life, will be a true festival highlight.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2025
To receive The New Yorker’s prize-winning journalism, photography, and short films, along with podcasts, cartoons, fiction, and more, sign up for our daily newsletter.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cartoon
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Michael Walker, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
The cartoon imagines that the audience would revel in punching down.
—Yii-Jan Lin, The Conversation, 11 Apr. 2025
The stars of the kids' TV show, about cartoon characters who come to life, will be a true festival highlight.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2025
To receive The New Yorker’s prize-winning journalism, photography, and short films, along with podcasts, cartoons, fiction, and more, sign up for our daily newsletter.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cartoon
Cite this Entry
“Cartoon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cartoon. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cartoon
noun
car·toon
kär-ˈtün 
1
: a design, drawing, or painting made as a model for the finished work
2
a
: a drawing intended as a humorous comment on public affairs
b
3
Etymology
from Italian cartone "pasteboard, a sketch of a planned drawing or painting done on heavy paper," from carta "sheet of paper," from Latin charta "piece of papyrus" — related to card entry 3, carton
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