Entertaiment is a genre of cultural production, including activities and ideas that excite, amuse, delight or hold the attention and interest of an audience. It is a broad category that can include many different things, from art and theatre to sports and games. It can also refer to the ideas and beliefs that underlie entertainment.

The word originates from the Medieval Latin intertenere, based on the prefix inter meaning “inside” and the suffix tenere meaning to stretch or hold inside. Its usage in English has a similar history to that of other words related to the body, such as bowel and intestine.