widescreen

Widescreen is a term used for image formats whose aspect ratio is wider than the traditional 4:3 television standard. It refers both to the shape of the display and to the captured or mastered content. Widescreen ranges across several ratios, with 16:9 (approximately 1.78:1) now common for televisions and computer displays, 21:9 (about 2.33:1) used by some ultrawide monitors, and cinema formats such as 1.85:1 and 2.39:1 used in theaters.

Historically, widescreen emerged in the 1950s as a response to television, with cinema processes like anamorphic widescreen expanding the horizontal image by lens compression during capture and expansion during projection. These formats produced the wider frames that became standard for theatrical releases, while television remained 4:3 for many years. In practice, content mastered in widescreen is often presented with letterboxing on 4:3 screens or cropped on some displays.

In consumer electronics, the adoption of HDTV in the late 20th century led to 16:9 becoming the standard for most TVs, computer displays, and streaming video. Ultrawide displays at 21:9 are marketed for immersive viewing and multi-window productivity. Content may be mastered in wider ratios and either displayed with letterboxing, padded to fill the screen, or cropped, depending on the display and delivery format.

Related terms include letterboxing, where black bars appear above and below a widescreen image on a narrower display, and pillarboxing, where vertical bars appear on the sides when a narrower image is shown on a widescreen display. Widescreen continues to influence film, television, and digital media design, shaping how audiences experience horizontal scope.