1
as in to describe
to give a representation or account of in words
the author portrays her characters with lifelike vividness
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to characterize
to point out the chief quality or qualities of an individual or group
traditionally, European authors portrayed the natives as wise and noble
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3
as in to depict
to present a picture of
a landscape that portrays the scenery near the town where the painter grew up
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4
as in to play
to present a portrayal or performance of
gained fame portraying Susan B. Anthony in a one-woman show
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of portray
Madsen was Tarantino's first choice to play Vincent Vega in his sophomore feature, Pulp Fiction — but the actor had already committed to portraying Kevin Costner's brother in Wyatt Earp, so the role instead went to John Travolta.
—
Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 3 July 2025
Aldean received online backlash for the song and music video, which were perceived as portraying a pro-gun violence stance and lynching sentiments.
—Marcus K. Dowling, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Even the two feline actors that portray Agnes’s cat Olga are well cast.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 2 July 2025
Oh Ae-sun (played by K-pop superstar IU, who also portrays Ae-sun’s daughter Geum-myeong) is a poor but ambitious girl who grows up on South Korea’s Jeju Island in the 1950s and 1960s.
—Regina Kim, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for portray
Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 3 July 2025
Aldean received online backlash for the song and music video, which were perceived as portraying a pro-gun violence stance and lynching sentiments.
—Marcus K. Dowling, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Even the two feline actors that portray Agnes’s cat Olga are well cast.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 2 July 2025
Oh Ae-sun (played by K-pop superstar IU, who also portrays Ae-sun’s daughter Geum-myeong) is a poor but ambitious girl who grows up on South Korea’s Jeju Island in the 1950s and 1960s.
—Regina Kim, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for portray
Recent Examples of Synonyms for portray
Verb
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Strickland described the demand to CNBC as being through the roof.—
Lori Ann LaRocco,
CNBC,
12 July 2025
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The site is described as Yale University’s former Wright Nuclear Structures Laboratory at 268 Whitney Avenue, New Haven.—
Staff report,
Hartford Courant,
12 July 2025
Verb
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Newspapers have characterized the issues as a clash of personalities between the editor and presenter Naga Munchetty, who has herself been accused of making colleagues uncomfortable.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
1 July 2025
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The caliber is also characterized by a vertical clutch and column wheel mechanism with chronograph minutes displayed by a central hand that jumps forward every 60 seconds.—
Anthony DeMarco,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
Verb
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Instead, the model ended up depicting World War II Nazis as Black.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
11 July 2025
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All that being said, Angel Reese or any Black man or woman should never be called or depicted as a Monkey.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
11 July 2025
Verb
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Grenier, 48, played Nate Cooper, the bumbling college boyfriend turned Boston sous-chef to Runway magazine assistant Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway).—
Madison E. Goldberg,
People.com,
1 July 2025
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Students were required to undertake certain extracurricular activities (Prevost was in the choir with Franks—both sing tenor—and played tennis) and to keep up their academic performance, but mostly the school’s focus was how to live in community.—
Belinda Luscombe,
Time,
1 July 2025
Verb
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Studio Azuki itself represents a joint venture between NFT brand Azuki, Japanese companies Comisma Inc. and Xenotoon Inc.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
1 July 2025
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Solid-state battery technology represents a genuine breakthrough in energy storage, offering superior performance, enhanced safety and greater resilience in extreme environments.—
Siyu Huang,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
Verb
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The military branch is slated to perform its first-ever refueling of a U.S. military asset in orbit as early as next summer.—
Sophia Compton,
FOXNews.com,
10 July 2025
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Jisoo, Lisa, Jennie, and Rosé of BLACKPINK perform at the Coachella Stage during the 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 15, 2023 in Indio, California.—
Ben Verbrugge,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 July 2025
Verb
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The move was widely interpreted as a subtle yet clear acknowledgment of her identity as the woman referenced in the song.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
7 July 2025
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As the amount of global data continues to grow, the challenge lies in processing that data to create maps that not only convey information but also enable machines to interpret and react to it autonomously.—
Michael Harrell,
Forbes.com,
7 July 2025
Verb
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These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
10 July 2025
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Wear comfortable shoes, as much of your exploring will probably be done on foot.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Portray.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portray. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
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