rom-com

noun

ˈräm-ˌkäm 

plural rom-coms

: romantic comedy

That's where the rom-com comes in, that wayward genre of sweet serendipity and forgivably thin plots set to rising music …

—Vogue

One of the film's pleasures is its movie within a movie, the rom-com "I Love You, I Love New York."

—Tad Friend

—often used before another noun

a silly rom-com plot

Does anybody cry funnier than Segel does in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the wonderful rom-com farce he not only starred in but wrote?

—Jim Windolf

Examples of rom-com in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some have described this play as biting political theater and others as a suspense thriller or a twisted rom-com. — Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026

Kasdan was a writer on Freaks and Geeks and Dawson’s Creek early in his career and wrote and directed the 2012 feature The First Time, a rom-com about two high schoolers who fall for each other over a weekend. — Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2026

Over the years, however, the actress has proven herself remarkably versatile, pivoting nimbly from frothy rom-coms and broad comedies to searing dramas, psychological thrillers, and big-budget spectacles. — Chris Bellamy, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Aug. 2026

An actress, comedian, and writer known for Strangers with Candy and At Home with Amy Sedaris, Sedaris has recently appeared in projects like Doctor Odyssey, Elsbeth and the Netflix rom-com Office Romance. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1958, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for rom-com

• aplomb
• balaam
• begam
• cocom
• embalm
• islam
• pogrom
• salaam
• sitcom
• balm
• bom
• bomb