noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
/ˈsɛljəˌlɔɪd/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:S EH1 L AH0 L OY2 D
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
Any of a variety of thermoplastics created from nitrocellulose and camphor, once used as photographic film.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
1894 June, Antonia Dickson, W. K. L. Dickson, Edison's Invention of the Kineto-Phonograph: Account of the Invention, article in Century Magazine, Volume 48, Issue 2, Then followed some experiments with drums, over which sheets of sensitized celluloid film were drawn, the edges being pressed into a narrow slot in the surface, similar in construction to the old tin-foil phonograph.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
The genre of cinema; film.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
An item, such as a jacket, made from celluloid.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, obsolete, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
adjective satellite
Meaning 4
artificial as if portrayed in a film
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
a novel with flat celluloid characters
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: synthetic
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
a medium that disseminates moving pictures
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
theater pieces transferred to celluloid
this story would be good cinema
film coverage of sporting events
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: film, cinema
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: medium
Narrower terms: silver screen
6
noun
Meaning 6
highly flammable substance made from cellulose nitrate and camphor; used in e.g. motion-picture and X-ray film; its use has decreased with the development of nonflammable thermoplastics
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: thermoplastic, thermoplastic resin
History
Etymology
Former trademark of Celluloid Manufacturing Company; from cellulose + -oid.
Across languages
Translations
25 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Belarusian:
цэлуло́ід
(celulóid)
— variety of thermoplastics
Belarusian:
цэлюлёід
(celjuljóid)
— variety of thermoplastics
Bulgarian:
целулои́д
(celuloíd)
— variety of thermoplastics
Catalan:
cel·luloide
— variety of thermoplastics
Chinese Mandarin:
賽璐珞 /赛璐珞
(sàilùluò)
— variety of thermoplastics
Dutch:
celluloid
— variety of thermoplastics
Esperanto:
celuloido
— variety of thermoplastics
French:
celluloïd
— variety of thermoplastics
Georgian:
ცელულოიდი
(celuloidi)
— variety of thermoplastics
German:
Zelluloid
— variety of thermoplastics
German:
Celluloid
— variety of thermoplastics
Ido:
celuloido
— variety of thermoplastics
Indonesian:
seluloid
— variety of thermoplastics
Italian:
celluloide
— variety of thermoplastics
Japanese:
セルロイド
(seruroido)
— variety of thermoplastics
Korean:
셀룰로이드
(sellulloideu)
— variety of thermoplastics
Malay:
seluloid
— variety of thermoplastics
Polish:
celuloid
— variety of thermoplastics
Portuguese:
celuloide
— variety of thermoplastics
Russian:
целлуло́ид
(cellulóid)
— variety of thermoplastics
Spanish:
celuloide
— variety of thermoplastics
Thai:
เซลลูลอยด์
(seel-luu-lɔɔi)
— variety of thermoplastics
Ukrainian:
целуло́їд
(celulójid)
— variety of thermoplastics
