whiteface
noun
white·face
ˈ(h)wīt-ˌfās 
1
: a white-faced animal
specifically
: hereford
2
: dead-white facial makeup
a clown in whiteface
Examples of whiteface in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
All these years later, whiteface has once again captured the public imagination.
—
Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 1 Oct. 2025
Wedged in there was the disastrous adaptation of The Island of Dr. Moreau, which saw the perfect storm of a difficult location shoot in Australia, Marlon Brando in kabuki-esque whiteface and the original director replaced by John Frankenheimer.
—Tom Tapp, Deadline, 1 Apr. 2025
Goldberg is the host and pulls off one of the great Oscars entrances of all time, coming on as Queen Elizabeth in whiteface.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
In Silent White Majority, the couple has white faces and no mouths; the same figures appear in whiteface with mouths in American Minstrels.
—Patricia Failing, ARTnews.com, 29 July 2024
The film’s perfunctory storyline is less notable than its plethora of eccentric plot elements, such as Chief persuading Southpaw and Spooky, the latter wearing whiteface, to rob a bank disguised as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Feb. 2024
This role is played by Matthew Hancock, who while delivering a sprawling monologue, applies whiteface in preparation of taking on the roles of both George and M’Closky.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2021
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Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 1 Oct. 2025
Wedged in there was the disastrous adaptation of The Island of Dr. Moreau, which saw the perfect storm of a difficult location shoot in Australia, Marlon Brando in kabuki-esque whiteface and the original director replaced by John Frankenheimer.
—Tom Tapp, Deadline, 1 Apr. 2025
Goldberg is the host and pulls off one of the great Oscars entrances of all time, coming on as Queen Elizabeth in whiteface.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
In Silent White Majority, the couple has white faces and no mouths; the same figures appear in whiteface with mouths in American Minstrels.
—Patricia Failing, ARTnews.com, 29 July 2024
The film’s perfunctory storyline is less notable than its plethora of eccentric plot elements, such as Chief persuading Southpaw and Spooky, the latter wearing whiteface, to rob a bank disguised as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Feb. 2024
This role is played by Matthew Hancock, who while delivering a sprawling monologue, applies whiteface in preparation of taking on the roles of both George and M’Closky.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2021
Cite this Entry
“Whiteface.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whiteface. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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