actor
/ˈæk.tɚ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.65 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Someone or something that takes part in some action; a doer, an agent.
noun
A person who acts a part in a theatrical play or (later) in film or television; a dramatic performer.
noun
The subject performing the action of a verb.
Example Sentences
- "A man may be principal in an offence in two degrees. A principal, in the first degree, is he that is the actor, or absolute perpetrator of the crime; and, in the second degree, he who is present, aiding, and abetting the fact to be done."
- "Never, my dear Bethel, did the most feverish dreams of fiction produce scenes more painful, or more terrific, than the real events to which I have been an actor, since the date of my last letter."
- "Mr. Clay had been too prominent an actor in public affairs to allow whig deception and misrepresentation a fair opportunity for successful action."
- "Seems like everyone's an actor / Or they're an actor's best friend / I wonder what was wrong to begin with / That they should all have to pretend"
- "Exactly. Marijuana is something we just all gradually decided is okay, like Mark Wahlberg as a serious actor. “You know what? Sure, I’ve decided I’m fine with that.”"
- ""I'm an actress -- actor, as we have to say these days.""
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti Proto-Italic *agō Latin agō Latin āctus Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin āctorbor. Middle English actour English actor Inherited from Middle English actour, from Anglo-Norman actor, Middle French actor, and their source, Latin āctor (“doer”), from agō (“to do”). Equivalent to act + -or. Cognate with Ancient Greek ἄκτωρ (áktōr, “leader”), from ἄγω (ágō, “lead, carry, convey, bring”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæk.tɚ/
- British English: /ˈæk.təː/