Entertaiment is a form of activity that provides amusement, enjoyment or pleasure. It is usually playful, but may have a serious purpose as in the case of ceremonies, festivals or satire. Entertainment is a highly flexible concept, capable of changing with the times, technologies and even individual tastes. This flexibility is perhaps illustrated by the etymology of the word itself, which derives from the Latin intertenere. The prefix inter means “inside” and the suffix tenere means to hold or grasp. The resulting idea suggests the ability to hold an idea in mind and to float it with other ideas.
Article adapted from the Dictionary of Contemporary American English.