portray Hear it!

portray definition

por·tray (pôr trā′)

transitive verb

  1. to make a picture or portrait of; depict; delineate
  2. to make a word picture of; describe
  3. to play the part of as in a play or film

Etymology: ME purtreien < MFr portraire < L protrahere, to draw forth < pro-, forth + trahere, to draw

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

portray Synonyms

portray

v.

  1. To represent

    depict, characterize, reproduce; see define 2, describe, represent 2.

  2. To imitate

    copy, simulate, mimic; see imitate 2, impersonate, parody.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

portray Usage Examples

Object

  • character: Beside portraying the character, the piece is written in an ' academic ' manner.

Preposition: on

  • television: Rugeley Community Church - Discovery Is your understanding of God based on reality, or just on what you see portrayed on television?

Subject

  • actor: Later in the scene Zero interacts with his Boss, portrayed by an actor who performs off-stage in front of a video camera.

Preposition: as

  • victim: Frequently ill, but brave, loyal and long-suffering, she is portrayed as a helpless victim of bizarre and cruel events.

Modifying Another Word

  • vividly: Both vividly portray the material losses inflicted upon Russia by the civil war.

Preposition: in

  • medium: The ' Hooray Henrys ' often portrayed in the media hardly exist.

Preposition: by

  • actor: Later in the scene Zero interacts with his Boss, portrayed by an actor who performs off-stage in front of a video camera.
portray usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

portray quotes

On the summit of the precipice and in the deep green woods emotions as palpable and as true have agitated me as if I were surveying them with the blessing of sight. There was an intelligence in the winds of the hills and in the solemn stillness of the buried foliage that could not be misleading. It entered into my heart and I could have wept, notthat Ididnot see, butthat Icould not portrayall I felt.

-Holman,James

portray quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Link to this page:

Cite this page:

MLA Style

"portray." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/portray>

APA Style

portray. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/portray

Comments:

Please or Register to post a comment