Matinee HOUR is a term used to refer to the time of day when movies are shown in the afternoon. It typically occurs between the hours of 12pm and 4pm, and is often cheaper than evening showings. The term MATINEE HOUR can be broken down into TWO 3-letter words: MAT and INE. MAT is an abbreviation for the word 'matinee, ' which is derived from the French word matin, meaning morning. INE is an abbreviation for the word 'HOUR, ' which is a unit of time equal to 60 minutes.