portrayal

/pɔrˈtreɪəl/

/pɔˈtreɪəl/

Other forms: portrayals

If you like the way an actor played the role of Abraham Lincoln, you might praise his portrayal of the sixteenth president.

Use the noun portrayal to describe the representation of someone, either in the form of a dramatic character, a spoken description, or even a photograph or painting of the person. You can also talk about the portrayal of an object or idea: "Dorothea Lange's photographs are an accurate portrayal of the Great Depression." The Old French word portraire, "to draw or trace," is the root of portrayal.

Definitions of portrayal

1. noun

   any likeness of a person, in any medium
   synonyms: portrait

   types:

   half-length

   a portrait showing the body from only the waist up

   self-portrait

   a portrait of yourself created by yourself

   type of:

   likeness, semblance

   picture consisting of a graphic image of a person or thing
2. noun

   a word picture of a person's appearance and character
   synonyms: portrait, portraiture

   type of:

   characterisation, characterization, delineation, depiction, picture, word picture, word-painting

   a graphic or vivid verbal description
3. noun

   acting the part of a character on stage; dramatically representing the character by speech and action and gesture
   synonyms: characterisation, characterization, enactment, personation

   types:

   impression

   an impressionistic portrayal of a person

   character, part, persona, role, theatrical role

   an actor's portrayal of someone in a play, film, etc...

   bit part, minor role

   a small role

   heavy

   a serious (or tragic) role in a play

   hero

   the principal character in a play or movie or novel or poem

   ingenue

   the role of an innocent artless young woman in a play

   name part, title role

   the role of the character after whom the play is named

   heroine

   the main good female character in a work of fiction

   baddie, villain

   the principal bad character in a film or work of fiction

   cameo

   a brief appearance by a well-known actor in a movie or play

   type of:

   acting, performing, playacting, playing

   the performance of a part or role in a drama
4. noun

   a representation by picture or portraiture
   synonyms: depicting, depiction, portraying

   types:

   mirror

   a faithful depiction or reflection

   type of:

   representational process

   any basic cognitive process in which some entity comes to stand for or represent something else
5. noun

   representation by drawing or painting etc
   synonyms: delineation, depiction

   types:

   portraiture

   the activity of making portraits

   type of:

   pictorial representation, picturing

   visual representation as by photography or painting