Screen vs. Scream — What's the Difference?
By Maham Liaqat & Urooj Arif — Updated on May 9, 2024
Screen refers to a surface or device used to display images or provide a physical barrier, while scream denotes a loud, high-pitched vocalization, often expressing strong emotions like fear or excitement.
Difference Between Screen and Scream
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Screen generally describes a device that displays visual information, such as a computer screen, or a barrier that provides separation, like a privacy screen. It can also mean to filter or evaluate something, as in "screening applicants." Scream, on the other hand, is a verb or noun describing a high-pitched, intense sound made by people in moments of distress, excitement, or pain.
Screen is most often associated with technology or separation, like smartphone screens or room dividers. Scream relates to vocal expressions and strong emotions, like people screaming at a concert or during a frightening event.
Screens are physical objects with practical functions, from displaying visuals to providing privacy. Screams are auditory expressions that convey strong feelings or reactions.
Comparison Chart
Definition
Display device or physical barrier
High-pitched vocal expression
Usage Contexts
Technology, privacy, filtering
Fear, excitement, pain, strong emotions
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Physical Form
Concrete object
Intense sound
Function
Displays visuals or provides a barrier
Expresses intense emotions
Verb Usage
To filter or evaluate
To emit a loud vocal expression
Compare with Definitions
Screen
Display device.
The movie played on a giant cinema screen.
Scream
High-pitched vocal sound.
The children let out a scream of excitement.
Screen
Privacy barrier.
The office cubicles have screens to ensure privacy.
Scream
Express strong emotion.
He screamed when the roller coaster dropped.
Screen
Filtering or checking.
They screen passengers before boarding the plane.
Scream
Loud cry for help.
She screamed for help after seeing the fire.
Screen
Evaluate or assess.
The company screens applicants through interviews.
Scream
Uncontrolled outburst.
The toddler screamed in frustration.
Screen
Surface for projection.
They used a white wall as a screen for the projector.
Scream
Figurative intensity.
The market crash made headlines scream in panic.
Screen
A movable device, especially a framed construction such as a room divider or a decorative panel, designed to divide, conceal, or protect.
Scream
Make a loud, piercing sound;
Fighter planes are screaming through the skies
Screen
One that serves to protect, conceal, or divide
Security guards formed a screen around the president. A screen of evergreens afforded privacy from our neighbors.
Scream
To utter a long loud piercing cry, as from pain or fear.
Screen
A surface, as on a smartphone, television, or computer monitor, on which one can read and view electronically displayed information and images.
Scream
To make a loud piercing sound
Jet planes screamed through the air.
Screen
A surface on which text and images are projected for display.
Scream
To speak or write in an excited or fearful manner.
Screen
The medium in which movies are shown
A star of stage and screen.
Scream
To have or produce a startling effect
The outlandish costume screamed with clashing colors.
Screen
A coarse sieve used for sifting out fine particles, as of sand, gravel, or coal.
Scream
To utter or say in a screaming voice or in an excited or fearful manner
The fans screamed their displeasure.
Screen
A system for preliminary appraisal and selection of personnel as to their suitability for particular jobs.
Scream
A long, loud, piercing cry or sound.
Screen
A window or door insertion of framed wire or plastic mesh used to keep out insects and permit air flow.
Scream
(Informal) One that is hilariously or ridiculously funny
The new play was a scream.
Screen
A body of troops or ships sent in advance of or surrounding a larger body to protect or warn of attack.
Scream
A loud, emphatic, exclamation of extreme emotion, especially horror, fear, excitement, or anger; it may comprise a word or a sustained, high-pitched vowel sound.
Screen
(Sports) A block, set with the body, that impedes the vision or movement of an opponent.
Scream
A loud vocalisation of many animals, especially in response to pain or fear.
Screen
(Football) A screen pass.
Scream
(music) A form of singing associated with the metal and screamo styles of music. It is a loud, rough, distorted version of the voice; rather than the normal voice of the singer.
Screen
To show or project (a movie, for example) on a screen.
Scream
(informal) Used as an intensifier.
We had a real scream of a time at the beach.
Screen
To conceal from view with a screen or something that acts like a screen
"Only a narrow line of brush and saplings screened the broad vista of the marsh" (David M. Carroll).
Scream
(printers' slang) An exclamation mark.
Screen
To protect, guard, or shield
"This rose is screened from the wind with burlap" (Anne Raver).
Scream
To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, shout outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to screech, to shriek.
Screen
To provide with a screen or screens
Screen a porch.
Scream
To move quickly; to race.
He almost hit a pole, the way he came screaming down the hill.
Screen
To separate or sift out (fine particles of sand, for example) by means of a sieve or screen.
Scream
(informal) To be very indicative of; clearly having the characteristics of.
Do you know what screams "I’m obnoxious"? People who feel the need to comment on every little thing they notice.
Screen
To sort through and eliminate unwanted examples of (something)
A filter that screens email, preventing spam from reaching the inbox.
Scream
To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, sharp outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to shriek; to screech.
I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry.
And scream thyself as none e'er screamed before.
Screen
To examine (a job applicant, for example) systematically in order to determine suitability.
Scream
A sharp, shrill cry, uttered suddenly, as in terror or in pain; a shriek; a screech.
Screen
To test or evaluate (a student) to determine placement in an educational system or to identify specific learning needs.
Scream
Sharp piercing cry;
Her screaming attracted the neighbors
Screen
To test or examine for the presence of disease or infection
Screen blood.
Screen a patient.
Scream
A high-pitched noise resembling a human cry;
He ducked at the screechings of shells
He heard the scream of the brakes
Screen
To subject to genetic screening.
Scream
A joke that seems extremely funny
Screen
To block the vision or movement of (an opponent) with the body.
Scream
Utter a sudden loud cry;
She cried with pain when the doctor inserted the needle
I yelled to her from the window but she couldn't hear me
Screen
To obscure an opponent's view of (a shot) by positioning oneself between the opponent and the shooter.
Scream
Utter or declare in a very loud voice;
You don't have to yell--I can hear you just fine
Screen
A physical divider intended to block an area from view, or provide shelter from something dangerous.
A fire screen
Screen
A material woven from fine wires intended to block animals or large particles from passing while allowing gasses, liquids and finer particles to pass.
Screen
A frame supporting a mesh of bars or wires used to classify fragments of stone by size, allowing the passage of fragments whose a diameter is smaller than the distance between the bars or wires.
Screen
(baseball) The protective netting which protects the audience from flying objects
Jones caught the foul up against the screen.
Screen
(printing) A stencil upon a framed mesh through which paint is forced onto printed-on material; the frame with the mesh itself.
Screen
(by analogy) Searching through a sample for a target; an act of screening
A drug screen, a genetic screen
Screen
(genetics) A technique used to identify genes so as to study gene functions.
Screen
Various forms or formats of information display
Screen
The viewing surface or area of a movie, or moving picture or slide presentation.
Screen
The informational viewing area of electronic devices, where output is displayed.
Screen
One of the individual regions of a video game, etc. divided into separate screens.
Screen
(computer) The visualised data or imagery displayed on a computer screen.
After you turn on the computer, the login screen appears.
Screen
(figurative) A disguise; concealment.
Screen
Definitions related to standing in the path of an opposing player
Screen
(American football) screen pass
Screen
(basketball) An offensive tactic in which a player stands so as to block a defender from reaching a teammate.
Screen
(cricket) An erection of white canvas or wood placed on the boundary opposite a batsman to make the ball more easily visible.
Screen
(nautical) A collection of less-valuable vessels that travel with a more valuable one for the latter's protection.
Screen
(architecture) A dwarf wall or partition carried up to a certain height for separation and protection, as in a church, to separate the aisle from the choir, etc.
Screen
A large scarf.
Screen
To filter by passing through a screen.
Mary screened the beans to remove the clumps of gravel.
Screen
To shelter or conceal.
Screen
To remove information, or censor intellectual material from viewing. To hide the facts.
The news report was screened because it accused the politician of wrongdoing.
Screen
To present publicly (on the screen).
The news report will be screened at 11:00 tonight.
Screen
To fit with a screen.
We need to screen this porch. These bugs are driving me crazy.
Screen
(medicine) To examine patients or treat a sample in order to detect a chemical or a disease, or to assess susceptibility to a disease.
Screen
(molecular biology) To search chemical libraries by means of a computational technique in order to identify chemical compounds which would potentially bind to a given biological target such as a protein.
Screen
(basketball) To stand so as to block a defender from reaching a teammate.
Screen
To determine the source or subject matter of a call before deciding whether to answer the phone.
Screen
Anything that separates or cuts off inconvenience, injury, or danger; that which shelters or conceals from view; a shield or protection; as, a fire screen.
Your leavy screens throw down.
Some ambitious men seem as screens to princes in matters of danger and envy.
Screen
A dwarf wall or partition carried up to a certain height for separation and protection, as in a church, to separate the aisle from the choir, or the like.
Screen
A surface, as that afforded by a curtain, sheet, wall, etc., upon which an image, as a picture, is thrown by a magic lantern, solar microscope, etc.
Screen
A long, coarse riddle or sieve, sometimes a revolving perforated cylinder, used to separate the coarser from the finer parts, as of coal, sand, gravel, and the like.
Screen
An erection of white canvas or wood placed on the boundary opposite a batsman to enable him to see ball better.
Screen
A netting, usu. of metal, contained in a frame, used mostly in windows or doors to allow in fresh air while excluding insects.
Screen
The surface of an electronic device, as a television set or computer monitor, on which a visible image is formed. The screen is frequently the surface of a cathode-ray tube containing phosphors excited by the electron beam, but other methods for causing an image to appear on the screen are also used, as in flat-panel displays.
Screen
The motion-picture industry; motion pictures.
Screen
To provide with a shelter or means of concealment; to separate or cut off from inconvenience, injury, or danger; to shelter; to protect; to protect by hiding; to conceal; as, fruits screened from cold winds by a forest or hill.
They were encouraged and screened by some who were in high commands.
Screen
To pass, as coal, gravel, ashes, etc., through a screen in order to separate the coarse from the fine, or the worthless from the valuable; to sift.
Screen
To examine a group of objects methodically, to separate them into groups or to select one or more for some purpose.
Screen
A white or silvered surface where pictures can be projected for viewing
Screen
Something that keeps things out or hinders sight;
They had just moved in and had not put up blinds yet
Screen
Display on the surface of the large end of a cathode-ray tube on which is electronically created
Screen
A covering that serves to conceal or shelter something;
They crouched behind the screen
Under cover of darkness
Screen
Protective covering consisting of a metallic netting mounted in a frame and covering windows or doors (especially for protection against insects)
Screen
A strainer for separating lumps from powdered material or grading particles
Screen
A door that is a screen to keep insects from entering a building through the open door;
He heard the screen slam as she left
Screen
Partition consisting of a decorative frame or panel that serves to divide a space
Screen
Test or examine for the presence of disease or infection;
Screen the blood for the HIV virus
Screen
Examine methodically;
Screen the suitcases
Screen
Examine in order to test suitability;
Screen these samples
Screen the job applicants
Screen
Project onto a screen for viewing;
Screen a film
Screen
Prevent from entering;
Block out the strong sunlight
Screen
Separate with a riddle, as grain from chaff
Screen
Protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm
Common Curiosities
Is scream always vocalized?
Usually, but it can also be metaphorical, as in "headlines screamed."
Can screen refer to a digital process?
Yes, screening can mean filtering or checking digitally, like screening emails.
Can screen describe evaluation in healthcare?
Yes, screening is often used for health checks, like cancer screening.
Is scream only used as a noun?
No, it's also a verb, as in "to scream."
Does screen imply any specific size?
No, screens can range from small phone screens to giant movie screens.
Can a person be screened?
Yes, like applicants screened for jobs or people screened at airports.
Can screen be metaphorical?
Yes, it can mean to conceal or evaluate, beyond just physical displays.
Does screen always involve separation?
Often, yes, whether physically or in terms of information filtering.
Is scream always related to fear or pain?
No, it can express joy or excitement, too, like cheering at concerts.
Can screen mean concealment?
Yes, it can mean to hide something, like screening a building with trees.
Is screen always about visual displays?
Not always; it can also mean separating spaces or evaluating data.
Can scream have positive connotations?
Yes, like screaming in joy or at a concert.
Can scream apply to animals?
Yes, some animals, like monkeys or birds, are known to scream.
Is scream always spontaneous?
Not necessarily; people can scream deliberately for attention or effect.
Are screens always rigid structures?
No, some are flexible like fabric screens, while others are solid.
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Written by
Maham Liaqat
Co-written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
