Definition of portray
portrayer
nounFrom the M-W Editors
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 of portray from the Web
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In this politically vulnerable situation, Issa’s opponents — as reaffirmed by some of the protest signs at the town hall — have tried to portray Issa as a Trump equivalent.
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Xi used the Davos forum of global elites in January to portray his country as a bastion of free trade.
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Barry Anderson, the man who portrayed Benny the Bull for 12 seasons, has stepped down.
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Bee portrayed some of those felonies as not so serious.
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The ceremony included re-enactors dressed in military attire from throughout America's history, an actor portraying President Abraham Lincoln reading the Gettysburg Address and several flyovers from World War 2-era airplanes.
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Meanwhile, Willis continued to portray himself as a successful entrepreneur.
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The Washington press corps began to portray Carter as an indecisive leader who veered from Vance to Dr. Brzezinski and back again.
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Similarly, in Champagne, where blending has been portrayed and marketed as an art form, more producers emphasize the terroir and the vineyard.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'portray'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of portray
Middle English portraien, from Anglo-French purtraire, from Latin protrahere to draw forth, reveal, expose — more at protract
First Known Use: 14th century
PORTRAY Defined for English Language Learners
portray
playDefinition of portray for English Language Learners
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: to describe (someone or something) in a particular way
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: to show (someone or something) in a painting, book, etc.
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: to play (a character) in a film, play, or television show
PORTRAY Defined for Kids
portray
playDefinition of portray for Students
portrayed
;portraying
1 : to make a portrait of The artist portrayed the young queen.
2 : to describe in words or words and images The story portrays frontier life.
3 : to play the role of He portrays the hero in a movie.
Learn More about portray
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See words that rhyme with portray Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for portray Spanish Central: Translation of portray Nglish: Translation of portray for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of portray for Arabic speakers
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