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Film & Television vocabulary · Television Formats and Series

Serial

Meaning in film & television, with examples

nounCommon term

In film & television, serial means: A programme whose story continues from one episode to the next rather than being fully resolved each time.

In Turkish: devamlı hikayeli dizi

How it is used

Used to emphasize continuing plot; a serial can be short and need not be a soap opera.

Example sentences

  1. The six-part serial follows one trial from the arrest to the verdict.

    One central story stretches across the complete run.

  2. Missing an episode of the serial made the later betrayal difficult to understand.

    Later events depend on developments in earlier episodes.

Common collocations

  • television serial
  • six-part serial
  • seriesA TV or streaming programme made of many episodes that share the same characters, subject or story.
  • episodeOne part of a TV series, podcast or web series that is broadcast or released as a separate programme.

More terms: Television Formats and Series

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