set piece
noun
plural set pieces
1
a
: a composition (as in literature, art, or music) executed in a fixed or ideal form often with studied artistry and brilliant effect
b
: a scene, depiction, speech, or event that is obviously designed to have an imposing effect
2
: a realistic piece of stage scenery standing by itself
3
: a precisely planned and conducted military operation
an offensive set piece that caught the enemy off guard
4
sports
: a carefully planned sequence of movements performed by the members of a team (as in soccer)
A set piece can be used on either a direct or indirect type of [free] kick, providing one of the few times during the game that a team can execute something that it may have spent hours practicing.—
Doug Roberson
Doug Roberson
Examples of set piece in a Sentence
a movie with some lovely set pieces
She scored with a set piece.
Recent Examples on the Web
Read: The missing piece of the Bob Marley biopic
The film’s most jaw-dropping set piece is also perhaps its most timeline-flouting.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
Given Biden’s years as a top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and his eight years as Vice President and four as a globe-trotting President, the legacy-building set piece makes sense and the easiest to sell to a nation that is not exactly conversant in international affairs.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 13 Jan. 2025
This set piece, based on the real-life Mountain Meadows Massacre, is presented as one unbroken take that immerses the viewer in the point of view of a single mother and her young son; the choreography is as elaborate and elegant as the action is blunt and forceful.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 10 Jan. 2025
That’s the premise of Zack Snyder’s full-throttle, off-the-wall action film where no set piece is too big and no idea is too bonkers.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for set piece 
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David Sims, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
Given Biden’s years as a top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and his eight years as Vice President and four as a globe-trotting President, the legacy-building set piece makes sense and the easiest to sell to a nation that is not exactly conversant in international affairs.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 13 Jan. 2025
This set piece, based on the real-life Mountain Meadows Massacre, is presented as one unbroken take that immerses the viewer in the point of view of a single mother and her young son; the choreography is as elaborate and elegant as the action is blunt and forceful.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 10 Jan. 2025
That’s the premise of Zack Snyder’s full-throttle, off-the-wall action film where no set piece is too big and no idea is too bonkers.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for set piece
Dictionary Entries Near set piece
Cite this Entry
“Set piece.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/set%20piece. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
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