thespian

1 of 2

noun

thes·​pi·​an ˈthe-spē-ən 

: actor

thespian

2 of 2

adjective

1

often Thespian [from the tradition that Thespis was the originator of the actor's role] : relating to the drama : dramatic

2

Thespian : of or relating to Thespis

Did you know?

Greek drama was originally entirely performed by choruses. According to tradition, the Greek dramatist Thespis, of the 6th century B.C., was the inventor of tragedy and the first to write roles for the individual actor as distinct from the chorus, and the actor's exchanges with the chorus were the first dramatic dialogue. Since Thespis himself performed the individual parts in his own plays, he was also the first true actor. Ever since choruses disappeared from drama, thespians have filled all the roles in plays. Thespian is also an adjective; thus, we can speak of "thespian ambitions" and "thespian traditions", for example.

Synonyms of thespian

Noun

• actor
• actress
• performer

Examples of thespian in a Sentence

Noun

a renowned thespian and director

although she's “acted” in a couple of horror movies, I'd hardly call her one of our more promising thespians

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Ben Kingsley will return as Simon Williams and Trevor Slattery, the respective super-powered actor and ex-terrorist-thespian around which the show revolved. —Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 23 Mar. 2026

The show had no stars, just a bunch of, then, very much unknown actors like Daniel Day-Lewis, Colin Firth, Kenneth Branagh, David Parfitt, and Rupert Everett, but Thompson came up with the idea of presenting them as a new class of thespians, the rest is history. —Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 19 Mar. 2026

Adjective

Into such a place came thespian artists draped in their finest including Cate Blanchett, a nominee for her performance as Arkadina in director Thomas Ostermeier’s thrilling Barbican Theatre production of Chekhov’s The Seagull. —Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 23 Mar. 2026

The pairing of Day-Lewis and DiCaprio is electric, and seeing Leo go toe-to-toe with the legendary thespian feels like Leo is finally living up to his potential as an A-lister. —Joe Reid, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1827, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1567, in the meaning defined at sense 2