thespian
Other forms: thespians
Thespian is a fancy word for actor. Since this word is related to Thespis, the guy who first took the stage in Ancient Greece, you can feel real scholarly using the word thespian.
As an adjective, you can use the word thespian to describe something that is related to drama. If you enjoy theater, you can say you enjoy thespian pursuits. Many high school drama clubs offer Thespian status to club members who earn a certain number of points by acting in shows or working on backstage tech for them. Note that the word thespian is sometimes capitalized because it is taken from a person's name.
Definitions of thespian
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a theatrical performer
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synonyms:
actor, histrion, player, role player
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examples:
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Allen Stewart Konigsberg
United States filmmaker and comic actor (1935-)
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Fred Astaire
United States dancer and cinema actor noted for his original and graceful tap dancing (1899-1987)
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Maurice Barrymore
United States actor; husband of Georgiana Emma Barrymore and father of Ethel Barrymore and John Barrymore and Lionel Barrymore (1847-1905)
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Lionel Barrymore
United States actor; son of Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Barrymore (1878-1954)
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John Barrymore
United States actor; son of Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Barrymore (1882-1942)
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Humphrey DeForest Bogart
United States film actor (1899-1957)
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John Wilkes Booth
United States actor and assassin of President Lincoln (1838-1865)
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Richard Burbage
English actor who was the first to play the leading role in several of Shakespeare's tragedies (1567-1619)
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Richard Burton
Welsh film actor who often co-starred with Elizabeth Taylor (1925-1984)
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James Cagney
United States film actor known for his portrayals of tough characters (1899-1986)
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Maurice Chevalier
French actor and cabaret singer (1888-1972)
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Frank Cooper
United States film actor noted for his portrayals of strong silent heroes (1901-1961)
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Sir Noel Pierce Coward
English dramatist and actor and composer noted for his witty and sophisticated comedies (1899-1973)
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Hume Blake Cronyn
Canadian actor who frequently played character parts with his wife Jessica Tandy (1911-2003)
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Harry Lillis Crosby
United States singer and film actor (1904-1977)
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James Byron Dean
United States film actor whose moody rebellious roles made him a cult figure (1931-1955)
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Robert De Niro
United States film actor who frequently plays tough characters (born 1943)
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Gerard Depardieu
French film actor (born in 1948)
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John Drew
United States actor (born in Ireland); father of Georgiana Emma Barrymore (1827-1862)
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Douglas Elton Fairbanks
United States film actor noted for his swashbuckling roles (1883-1939)
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Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
United States film actor; son of Douglas Elton Fairbanks, (1909-2000)
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Henry Fonda
United States film actor (1905-1982)
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William Clark Gable
United States film actor (1901-1960)
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David Garrick
English actor and theater manager who was the foremost Shakespearean actor of his day (1717-1779)
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Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson
Australian actor (born in the United States in 1956)
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Arthur John Gielgud
English actor of Shakespearean roles who was also noted for appearances in films (1904-2000)
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Cary Grant
United States actor (born in England) who was the elegant leading man in many films (1904-1986)
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Harley Granville-Barker
English actor and dramatist and critic and director noted for his productions of Shakespearean plays (1877-1946)
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Sir Alec Guinness
English stage and screen actor noted for versatility (1914-2000)
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Thomas J. Hanks
United States film actor (born in 1956)
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Reginald Carey Harrison
English actor on stage and in films (1908-1990)
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John Hemminge
English actor who edited the first folio of Shakespeare's plays (1556-1630)
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Dustin Hoffman
versatile United States film actor (born in 1937)
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Sir Anthony Philip Hopkins
Welsh film actor (born in 1937)
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Leslie Howard Stainer
English actor of stage and screen (1893-1943)
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Asa Yoelson
United States singer (born in Russia) who appeared in the first full-length talking film (1886-1950)
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William Henry Pratt
United States film actor (born in England) noted for his performances in horror films (1887-1969)
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Edmund Kean
English actor noted for his portrayals of Shakespeare's great tragic characters (1789-1833)
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Joseph Francis Keaton
United States comedian and actor in silent films noted for his acrobatic skills and deadpan face (1895-1966)
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Eugene Curran Kelly
United States dancer who performed in many musical films (1912-1996)
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Charles Laughton
United States film actor (born in England) (1899-1962)
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Lee Yuen Kam
United States actor who was an expert in kung fu and starred in martial arts films (1941-1973)
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Jack Lemmon
United States film actor (1925-2001)
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Harold Clayton Lloyd
United States comic actor in silent films; he used physical danger as a source of comedy (1893-1971)
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Laszlo Lowestein
United States actor (born in Hungary) noted for playing sinister roles (1904-1964)
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Bela Ferenc Blasko
United States film actor (born in Hungary) noted for portraying monsters (1884-1956)
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Alfred Lunt
United States actor who performed with his wife Lynn Fontanne in many stage productions (1893-1977)
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E. G. Marshall
United States actor (1914-1998)
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Steve Martin
United States actor and comedian (born in 1945)
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James Neville Mason
English film actor (1909-1984)
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Robert Mitchum
United States film actor (1917-1997)
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Dudley Stuart John Moore
English actor and comedian who appeared on television and in films (born in 1935)
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Paul Leonard Newman
United States film actor (born in 1925)
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Baron Olivier of Birghton
English actor best know for his Shakespearean roles (1907-1989)
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Peter Seamus O'Toole
British actor (born in Ireland in 1932)
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Sidney Poitier
United States film actor and director (born in 1927)
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Charles Robert Redford
United States actor and filmmaker who starred with Paul Newman in several films (born in 1936)
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Sir Ralph David Richardson
British stage and screen actor noted for playing classic roles (1902-1983)
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Edward Goldenberg Robinson
United States film actor noted for playing gangster roles (1893-1973)
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George C. Scott
award-winning United States film actor (1928-1999)
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Peter Sellers
English comic actor (1925-1980)
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Francis Albert Sinatra
United States singer and film actor (1915-1998)
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Otis Skinner
United States actor (1858-1942)
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Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavsky
Russian actor and theater director who trained his actors to emphasize the psychological motivation of their roles (1863-1938)
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James Maitland Stewart
United States film actor who portrayed incorruptible but modest heros (1908-1997)
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Israel Strassberg
United States actor and film director (born in Austria) who was a leader in developing method acting in the United States (1901-1982)
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Erich von Stroheim
United States film actor (born in Austria) (1885-1957)
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Spencer Tracy
United States film actor who appeared in many films with Katharine Hepburn (1900-1967)
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Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree
English actor and theatrical producer noted for his lavish productions of Shakespeare (1853-1917)
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Peter Alexander Ustinov
British actor and playwright (1921-2004)
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Duke Wayne
United States film actor who played tough heroes (1907-1979)
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George Orson Welles
United States actor and filmmaker (1915-1985)
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types:
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actress
a female actor
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barnstormer, play-actor, playactor, trouper
an actor who travels around the country presenting plays
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character actor
an actor who specializes in playing supporting roles
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comedian
an actor in a comedy
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ham, ham actor
an unskilled actor who overacts
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heavy
an actor who plays villainous roles
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ingenue
an actress who specializes in playing the role of an artless innocent young girl
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leading man
actor who plays the leading male role
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mime, mimer, mummer, pantomimer, pantomimist
an actor who communicates entirely by gesture and facial expression
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plant
an actor situated in the audience whose acting is rehearsed but seems spontaneous to the audience
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reenactor
a person who enacts a role in an event that occurred earlier
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scene-stealer
an actor who draws more attention than other actors in the same scene
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movie actor, screen actor
an actor who plays a role in a film
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lead, principal, star
an actor who plays a principal role
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extra, spear carrier, supernumerary
a minor actor in crowd scenes
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tragedian
an actor who specializes in tragic roles
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standby, understudy
an actor able to replace a regular performer when required
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upstager
a selfish actor who upstages the other actors
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walk-on
plays a small part in a dramatic production
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comedienne
a female actor in a comedy
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co-star
one of two actors who are given equal status as stars in a play or film
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film star, movie star
a star who plays leading roles in the cinema
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icon, idol, matinee idol
someone who is adored blindly and excessively
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leading lady
actress who plays the leading female role
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starlet
a young (film) actress who is publicized as a future star
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TV star, television star
a star in a television show
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tragedienne
an actress who specializes in tragic roles
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type of:
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performer, performing artist
an entertainer who performs a dramatic or musical work for an audience
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of or relating to drama“the movie director had thespian cooperation”
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Word Family
Vocabulary lists containing thespian
Eight Nights of Flirting
During a Hanukkah vacation on the island of Nantucket, sixteen-year-old Shira Barbanel makes a deal with Tyler Nelson to give her flirting lessons in exchange for an introduction to her media executive great-uncle.
Challenge, List 11
This list of challenge words features some of the hardest words that you will encounter in the Verbal Reasoning section of the GRE. These are words that typically appear less frequently across different academic disciplines, so you are less likely to have encountered them before. Master these difficult words and watch your GRE score soar!
The Tyrant's Tomb
In this fourth book of the series The Trials of Apollo, Lester joins the Roman demigods in their search for the tomb of an undead king.
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