download a movie

Meaning

This phrase refers to saving a digital copy of a film from the internet onto your device (like a tablet, laptop, or phone) so you can watch it later. People often do this before traveling when they will not have internet access. It is a very common, neutral expression.

Examples

• I always download a movie on my tablet before a long flight.

  I always download a movie on my tablet before a long flight.

• Is it legal to download a movie from this website?

  Is it legal to download a movie from this website?

• I wanted to download a movie, but my Wi-Fi connection keeps dropping.

  I wanted to download a movie, but my Wi-Fi connection keeps dropping.

• She decided to download a movie so she could watch it in the cabin.

  She decided to download a movie so she could watch it in the cabin.

• How long does it usually take to download a movie on your computer?

  How long does it usually take to download a movie on your computer?

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I will download a movie in my tablet.

  ✓ I will download a movie onto my tablet.

  Use 'onto' or 'to' when specifying the device you are saving the file to.

• ✗ We can download a movie on Netflix to watch it live.

  ✓ We can stream a movie on Netflix to watch it live.

  'Download' means saving it to watch offline later. If you watch it instantly over the internet, use 'stream'.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Since there is no internet at the cabin, I should ___ tonight.

  💡 Save a film to your device to watch offline.

  Show answer

  download a movie

• It is much faster to ___ when you are connected to high-speed Wi-Fi.

  💡 Get a film from the internet onto your computer.

  Show answer

  download a movie