The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Screen \Screen\ (skr[=e]n), n. [OE. scren, OF. escrein, escran,
   F. ['e]cran, of uncertain origin; cf. G. schirm a screen,
   OHG. scirm, scerm a protection, shield, or G. schragen a
   trestle, a stack of wood, or G. schranne a railing.]
   1. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

            Your leavy screens throw down.        --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

            Some ambitious men seem as screens to princes in
            matters of danger and envy.           --Bacon.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. (Arch.) 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.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. (Cricket) An erection of white canvas or wood placed on
      the boundary opposite a batsman to enable him to see ball
      better.
      [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

   6. a netting, usu. of metal, contained in a frame, used
      mostly in windows or doors to allow in fresh air while
      excluding insects.

   Screen door, a door of which half or more is composed of a
      screen.

   Screen window, a screen inside a frame, fitted for
      insertion into a window frame.
      [PJC]

   7. 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.
      [PJC]

   8. The motion-picture industry; motion pictures. "A star of
      stage and screen."
      [PJC]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Screen \Screen\ (skr[=e]n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Screened; p.
   pr. & vb. n. Screening.]
   1. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

            They were encouraged and screened by some who were
            in high commands.                     --Macaulay.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. to examine a group of objects methodically, to separate
      them into groups or to select one or more for some
      purpose. As:
      (a) To inspect the qualifications of candidates for a job,
          to select one or more to be hired.
      (b) (Biochem., Med.) to test a large number of samples, in
          order to find those having specific desirable
          properties; as, to screen plant extracts for
          anticancer agents.
          [PJC]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

screen
    n 1: a white or silvered surface where pictures can be projected
         for viewing [syn: screen, silver screen, projection
         screen]
    2: a protective covering that keeps things out or hinders sight;
       "they had just moved in and had not put up blinds yet" [syn:
       blind, screen]
    3: the display that is electronically created on the surface of
       the large end of a cathode-ray tube [syn: screen, CRT
       screen]
    4: a covering that serves to conceal or shelter something; "a
       screen of trees afforded privacy"; "under cover of darkness";
       "the brush provided a covert for game"; "the simplest
       concealment is to match perfectly the color of the
       background" [syn: screen, cover, covert, concealment]
    5: a protective covering consisting of netting; can be mounted
       in a frame; "they put screens in the windows for protection
       against insects"; "a metal screen protected the observers"
    6: the personnel of the film industry; "a star of stage and
       screen" [syn: filmdom, screenland, screen]
    7: a strainer for separating lumps from powdered material or
       grading particles [syn: sieve, screen]
    8: a door that consists of a frame holding metallic or plastic
       netting; used to allow ventilation and to keep insects from
       entering a building through the open door; "he heard the
       screen slam as she left" [syn: screen door, screen]
    9: partition consisting of a decorative frame or panel that
       serves to divide a space
    v 1: test or examine for the presence of disease or infection;
         "screen the blood for the HIV virus" [syn: screen,
         test]
    2: examine methodically; "screen the suitcases"
    3: examine in order to test suitability; "screen these samples";
       "screen the job applicants" [syn: screen, screen out,
       sieve, sort]
    4: project onto a screen for viewing; "screen a film"
    5: prevent from entering; "block out the strong sunlight" [syn:
       screen, block out]
    6: separate with a riddle, as grain from chaff [syn: riddle,
       screen]
    7: protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm [syn: shield,
       screen]

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 January 2023):

screen

   1.  A generic term for a display device that shows
   text and/or images on a roughly flat rectangular surface.  The
   most common type is usually refered to as a "monitor" and is
   based on a cathode-ray tube, though flat panel displays
   have, since around 2000, become increasingly competitive in
   price and performance.

   (2005-07-28)

   2. A screen multiplexer utility which lets you run multiple
   interactive terminal sessions (and curses programs)
   through a single terminal connection (on one virtual
   console, one terminal, through one modem link, telnet
   session or xterm).

   Screen can detach processes from one terminal and attach them
   to another.  "Auto-detach" lets you continue working after
   being disconnected and reconnected.  It supports keyboard
   driven cut and paste from any text and/or curses application
   (like Lynx) to any other (like xemacs).

   Screen comes with many Linux distributions and is available
   (free) on many other Unix platforms.

   (2005-07-29)


The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003):

screen
 n.

    [Atari ST demoscene] One demoeffect or one screenful of them. Probably
    comes from old Sierra-style adventures or shoot-em-ups where one travels
    from one place to another one screenful at a time.