actor

noun

ac·​tor ˈak-tər 

also -ˌtȯr

1

: one that acts : doer

2

a

: one who acts in a play, movie, television show, etc.

b

: one who behaves as if acting a part

3

: one that takes part in any affair : participant

political actors

actorish

ˈak-tə-rish 

adjective

actorly

ˈak-tər-lē 

adjective

Synonyms of actor

• actress
• performer
• entertainer
• thespian

Examples of actor in a Sentence

my sister went to drama school to become an actor

Benjamin Franklin was a major actor in many of the events leading up to the founding of our nation.

Recent Examples on the Web

The business also attracted high profile clients like diplomats and actors. — Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 20 July 2026

Both discoveries informed her choices for many of the principal cast and background actors. — Sophia Panych, Allure, 20 July 2026

The actor Steven Seagal, who has had Russian citizenship for ten years, attended, as did the far-right podcaster Candace Owens, although their seats weren’t as good as Cook’s. — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 20 July 2026

But the actor is at his most manically animated with the sorceress Circe (Samantha Morton), who has food that Eurylochus’s starving crewmates need. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English actour "doer, pleader," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin āctor, from agere "to drive (cattle), cause to move, do" + -tor, agent suffix — more at agent

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing actor

• bad actor
• character actor
• co-actor
• Method actor

Rhymes for actor

• acter
• factor
• tractor
• attractor
• cofactor
• compactor
• contactor
• contractor
• distractor
• extractor
• impactor
• protractor

Kids Definition

actor

noun

ac·​tor ˈak-tər 

: one that acts

especially : a person who acts especially in a play or movie or on television