persona

noun

per·so·na | \ pər-ˈsō-nə

, -ˌnä\

plural personae\ pər-ˈsō-(ˌ)nē

, -ˌnī \ or personas

Definition of persona

1 : a character assumed by an author in a written work

2a plural personas [ New Latin, from Latin ] : an individual's social facade or front that especially in the analytic psychology of C. G. Jung reflects the role in life the individual is playing — compare anima

b : the personality that a person (such as an actor or politician) projects in public : image

3 plural personae : a character in a fictional presentation (such as a novel or play) —usually used in plural comic personae

Examples of persona in a Sentence

His public persona is that of a strong, determined leader, but in private life he's very insecure. The band takes on a whole new persona when they perform live.

Recent Examples on the Web

Joshua Fields, the executive director of Consciousness Hacking, the company behind the summit, urged us all to leave our social-climbing, networking personas at the door. — Emma Grey Ellis, WIRED, "I Think I Hated This Tech Conference on Psychedelics," 8 June 2019 The seated dinner was hosted by the talented Tony-Award winner Sarah Jones, who displayed her acting chops by taking on a variety of comical personas throughout the night—like several hosts wrapped up into one. — Zachary Schwartz, Vogue, "It Was a Night of History and Hip Hop at the Gordon Parks Foundation Gala," 6 June 2019 But as a filmmaker, his endgame, messaging and true persona feel a bit blurry. — latimes.com, "Review: Documentaries ‘The Lavender Scare,’ ‘Ghost Fleet’ and more," 6 June 2019 In a bit of inspired stunt casting, Miley Cyrus plays Ashley O, a pop star whose girl-power rhetoric conceals depression exacerbated by her handlers’ chokehold on her music and persona; the resemblance to Britney Spears doesn’t seem coincidental. — Judy Berman, Time, "Black Mirror Used to Be a Terrifying Vision of the Future. Season 5 Is Just Silly," 5 June 2019 Executive producer Erica Messer opened up to Deadline about the potential to include former personas in the final season. — Jennifer Aldrich, Country Living, "The Final Season of 'Criminal Minds' Will Be a 'Tearjerker' and We're Not Ready," 27 Apr. 2019 Trubisky has touted the energized team's new culture and a positive vibe emanating from Nagy, 40, whose persona should better suit this young roster than old school predecessor John Fox's demeanor did. — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, "Bears training camp questions: Can Mitchell Trubisky take off under rookie coach Matt Nagy?," 10 July 2018 The song from Kanye’s most recent effort Ye features Kid Cudi portraying an internal persona of Kanye's that’s pleading to be loved and adored. — Mark Elibert, Billboard, "Kid Cudi's 10 Best Features: Critic's Picks," 11 June 2018 His entire persona is satire, aimed at poking fun at traditional sports media, players and coaches who traffic in clichés, and of loudmouth fans raised in a smoldering universe of hot takes. — Rick Maese, chicagotribune.com, "PFT Commenter rose from an internet 'cesspool' to podcasting glory. And no one knows who he is.," 21 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'persona.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about persona

Dictionary Entries near persona

Statistics for persona

Last Updated

15 Jun 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for persona

The first known use of persona was in 1732

See more words from the same year

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for persona

persona

noun

English Language Learners Definition of persona

: the way you behave, talk, etc., with other people that causes them to see you as a particular kind of person : the image or personality that a person presents to other people

See the full definition for persona in the English Language Learners Dictionary

persona

noun

per·so·na | \ pər-ˈsō-nə, -ˌnä

plural personas

Medical Definition of persona

: an individual's social facade or front that especially in the analytic psychology of C. G. Jung reflects the role in life the individual is playing — compare anima sense 1