PORTRAY Synonyms: 94 Similar and Opposite Words

portray

verb

pȯr-ˈtrā

Definition of portray

as in to describe

to give a representation or account of in words the author portrays her characters with lifelike vividness

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to characterize

to point out the chief quality or qualities of an individual or group traditionally, European authors portrayed the natives as wise and noble

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in to depict

to present a picture of a landscape that portrays the scenery near the town where the painter grew up

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in to play

to present a portrayal or performance of gained fame portraying Susan B. Anthony in a one-woman show

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of portray As well as the two ur-bad boyfriends from HBO’s Girls Christopher Abbott and Adam Driver who will portray, respectively, Professor Charles Xavier and Nathaniel Milbury/Mister Sinister. — Chris Lee, Vulture, 16 Aug. 2026 People who once dined together, smiled together, campaigned together and worked together to strengthen our communities are suddenly being portrayed as villains. — Beau Simon, Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2026 The violence portrayed in the ring only scratched the surface of what occurred throughout the night. — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 16 Aug. 2026 Mescal stars as Paul McCartney, Quinn plays George Harrison, Barry Keoghan portrays Ringo Starr and Harris Dickinson plays John Lennon. — Jack Dunn, Variety, 16 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for portray

Recent Examples of Synonyms for portray

Verb

Welch has described his mishandling of this matter as a systemic failure.

— David Greising, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026
Bessent described a two-pronged approach featuring financial pressure and a physical blockade of Islamic republic's ports.

— Frank Andrews, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of describe

Verb

Beyond its fascinating reliefs depicting pharaohs and Egyptian deities, the temple offers sweeping panoramic views across Madrid’s western districts.

— Jennifer Fernández Solano, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Art depicting animals in a snowy woodland scene by Tom Shelton from the David Barnett Gallery hangs above the bed.

— Kelly Ryan Kegans, Midwest Living, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of depict

Verb

He was handed a wild card to play doubles at Wimbledon this year but lost in the first round.

— Ben Church, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026
My model is concentrated on the last 24 rounds played, and includes driving distance, strokes gained off the tee, strokes gained around the green, strokes gained putting, and strokes gained on par 3s longer than 200 yards.

— Dennis Esser, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of play

Verb

Those goals aren’t there this season — missing a month with knee inflammation took him out of the running — but Vitello said there continues to be value in sending Webb to represent the club every fifth day.

— Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026
The Ohio campus still represents a major test for US AI infrastructure.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of represent

Verb

The Republican nominee also said the work agreements that allow many state employees to perform their jobs remotely need reform as well.

— Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 14 Aug. 2026
Ogbonnaya, who performs under his first name, will be on the bill; so will No-Fi RPM, a live-mixing series that Curran and Farlee run with collaborators Estevan Medina, Dillon Kelley and Patrick Mitchell.

— Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of perform

Verb

Basically, captioning provides access to words, while interpreting provides access to the message’s linguistic, cultural, emotional, and contextual meaning.

— Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Aug. 2026
For decades, companies have asked individual sellers to enter projections into CRM, then asked managers to interpret them, then scheduled calls where leadership negotiates a number that everyone knows is partly theater.

— Stephen Messer, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of interpret

Browse Nearby Words

portraitures

portray

portrayal

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Portray.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/portray. Accessed 20 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of portray

verb

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