pan·to·mime
ˈpan-tə-ˌmīm 
1
2
a
: an ancient Roman dramatic performance featuring a solo dancer and a narrative chorus
b
: any of various dramatic or dancing performances in which a story is told by expressive bodily or facial movements of the performers
a ballet that is part dance and part pantomime
c
: a British theatrical entertainment of the Christmas season based on a nursery tale and featuring topical songs, tableaux, and dances
3
a
: conveyance of a story by bodily or facial movements especially in drama or dance
b
: the art or genre of conveying a story by bodily movements only
pantomimed; pantomiming
: to engage in pantomime
: to represent by pantomime
Examples of pantomime in a Sentence
Noun
In the game of charades, one player uses pantomime to represent a word or phrase that the other players have to try to guess.
We saw pantomimes at the fair.
a ballet that is part dance and part pantomime
Verb
He pantomimed someone talking on the phone.
Recent Examples on the Web
Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
The rest of the class quickly grows bored with this whole pantomime.
—Domenico Starnone, The Atlantic, 28 Sep. 2025
Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 6 Oct. 2025
The former Colorado standout pantomimed answers to reporters in the locker room.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pantomime
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Noun
Later, in the scene in which Winnifred is kept awake by a single pea, Burnett performed a prolonged pantomime of violent physical discomfort, thrashing and dangling like a fish on a line atop a towering stack of mattresses.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
The rest of the class quickly grows bored with this whole pantomime.
—Domenico Starnone, The Atlantic, 28 Sep. 2025
Verb
Are the bees, in fact, pantomiming the way itself?
—Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 6 Oct. 2025
The former Colorado standout pantomimed answers to reporters in the locker room.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pantomime
Cite this Entry
“Pantomime.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pantomime. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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