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
The show started out as Skipper Chuck’s Popeye’s Playhouse after WTVJ bought the rights to the then-new animation series, and in between cartoons Zink performed alongside his comedic sidekick Scrubby, played by Richard Andrews.
—
Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2025
The banner of the website was replaced with cartoon characters, a pornographic image and a music video.
—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 30 Mar. 2025
Users experimented with different cartoon styles, such as South Park, Rick and Morty and The Simpsons, but Studio Ghibli proved the most popular, trending on X (Twitter).
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
There has been no shortage of Scooby-Doo reimaginings and adaptations since 1969 when the cartoon first debuted on CBS.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cartoon
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Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2025
The banner of the website was replaced with cartoon characters, a pornographic image and a music video.
—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 30 Mar. 2025
Users experimented with different cartoon styles, such as South Park, Rick and Morty and The Simpsons, but Studio Ghibli proved the most popular, trending on X (Twitter).
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
There has been no shortage of Scooby-Doo reimaginings and adaptations since 1969 when the cartoon first debuted on CBS.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 27 Mar. 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 7 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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