portray

verb

por·​tray pȯr-ˈtrā 

pər-

portrayed; portraying; portrays

transitive verb

1

: to make a picture of : depict

2

a

: to describe in a particular way

The article portrayed the president as confident.

b

: to play the role of : enact

portrays the hero in the film

portrayer noun

Synonyms of portray

• describe
• depict

Examples of portray in a Sentence

The White House has portrayed the President as deeply conflicted over the matter.

The lawyer portrayed his client as a victim of child abuse.

He portrayed himself as a victim.

The painting portrays the queen in a purple robe.

Laurence Olivier portrayed Hamlet beautifully.

Recent Examples on the Web

In the absence of a dedicated law or regulatory body, at least 45 fertility clinics in Spain offer surrogacy services, often relying on intermediaries who recruit women through Facebook and WhatsApp ads portraying surrogacy as a job opportunity. —Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025

Aniston portrays a judge in a comedic sketch promoting Warren’s upcoming concert trek, the Little Orphan Alex Live Tour. —Ashley Iasimone, Billboard, 15 Nov. 2025

However, these visual effects soon succeeded in conveying much deeper realities, eventually becoming an expression of the desire to contemplate and understand life, to recount its greatness and fragility and to portray the longing for infinity. —Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 15 Nov. 2025

He’s portrayed by Daniel Betts, who doesn’t physically resemble the actual Noyes. —Jane Borden, Rolling Stone, 15 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English portraien, purtrayen, purtreyen "to draw, paint, depict, decorate, form a mental image of," borrowed from Anglo-French purtraire "to represent (in drawing, painting, etc.), depict, decorate, plan" (also continental Old French pourtraire), from pur-, pour-, por-, prefix marking completion of an action (going back to Latin prō-, prefix denoting forward movement) + traire "to drag, pull, draw out, launch, shoot, trace, represent," going back to Latin trahere "to drag, draw, take along" — more at pro- entry 2, abstract entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for portray

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• astray
• aue
• away
• ballet
• belay
• beltway
• beret

Kids Definition

portray

verb

por·​tray pōr-ˈtrā 

pȯr-

1

: to make a portrait of

2

a

: to describe in words

b

: to play the role of

portrayer noun