marquee

1 of 2

noun

mar·​quee mär-ˈkē How to pronounce marquee (audio)
1
chiefly British : a large tent set up for an outdoor party, reception, or exhibition
2
a
: a permanent canopy often of metal and glass projecting over an entrance (as of a hotel or theater)
The hotel doorman was stationed under the marquee.
b
: a sign usually over the entrance of a theater or arena that displays the names of featured attractions and principal performers
The brightly lighted marquee displayed the title of the movie currently featured.

marquee

2 of 2

adjective

: having or associated with the name recognition and attraction of one whose name appears on a marquee : big-name, star
marquee athletes
marquee events

Examples of marquee in a Sentence

Noun She dreamed of seeing her name on the theater marquee.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Some of the marquee schools on board outside of LSU, University of Texas and USC include the University of Michigan, University of Miami, University of Kentucky, University of Alabama, Penn State University, Clemson University, Florida State University and many more. Michael Saponara, Billboard, 4 Apr. 2024 The marquee French festival earlier announced Barbie director Greta Gerwig will serve as the Cannes jury president, becoming only the second female director to take over the post, following Jane Campion in 2014. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Apr. 2024 Despite the poor showings from marquee basketball schools, the tournament was a hit in homes across the country. Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Apr. 2024 For athletes in marquee sports like football and men’s basketball, however, the experience has been more unsettling. Joe Drape, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024 Stable Diffusion was simultaneously Stability’s marquee product and its existential cash crisis. Kenrick Cai, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024 Mitchell’s death marks the passing of a Sacramento radio giant, a popular personality during a golden age of broadcasting when marquee names shone brightly on both radio and television, before cable, then social media, atomized the local media market. Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee, 28 Mar. 2024 Cook was also one of the marquee names on last year’s list of participants, which was the first time the event was held in-person after three years of Covid isolation. Bloomberg, Fortune, 24 Mar. 2024 Other marquee names on Friday’s schedule include former No. 1s Andy Murray and Naomi Osaka; Americans Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Jessica Pegula and Sloane Stephens; Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Ons Jabeur. Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2024
Adjective
League-leaders Bayern Munich help kick off Saturday’s six-match slate before a pair of matches on Sunday, including a marquee matchup between Koln and Eintracht Frankfurt. Nick Hennion, Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2023 Bergman will continue to have dominion over all of Disney’s marquee film stables, including Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm, Walt Disney Animation, 20th Century and Searchlight, as well as Disney Music Group and Disney Theatrical Group. Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Feb. 2023 White, listed at 6-foot-4, 225-pounds, is a marquee addition for Freeze and offensive coordinator Phillip Montgomery. Nick Alvarez | Nalvarez@al.com, al, 3 Feb. 2023 Gimlet Media, Spotify’s marquee acquisition announcing its arrival into the podcast category, is now a shell of its former self. Vulture, 3 Feb. 2023 With both candidates expected to raise significant campaign cash, the race for governor is Texas’ marquee contest. Dallas News, 27 June 2022 Many political observers considered Tuesday's Pennsylvania GOP Senate election to be the marquee contest in the busiest day of the midterm primary season. Nicholas Reimann, Forbes, 18 May 2022 Along with celebrating a marquee victory over an Aggies team that was 9-1 in its previous 10 games, the Mitchells turned 23 on Tuesday. Bob Holt, Arkansas Online, 3 Feb. 2023 Both singers are nominated for the evening’s top prizes, including the marquee record of the year category. Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'marquee.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Adjective

modification of French marquise, literally, marchioness

First Known Use

Noun

1690, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1946, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of marquee was in 1690

Dictionary Entries Near marquee

Cite this Entry

“Marquee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/marquee. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

marquee

noun
mar·​quee
mär-ˈkē
1
: a large tent set up for an outdoor party or exhibition
2
: a rooflike structure sticking out over an entrance
a theater marquee

More from Merriam-Webster on marquee

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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