actress
Americannoun
noun
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a woman who acts in a play, film, broadcast, etc
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informal a woman who puts on a false manner in order to deceive others
Usage
Use of the word actress to refer to a female who acts is old-fashioned. The modern gender-neutral form is actor
Gender
What's the difference between actress and actor? See -ess.
Etymology
Origin of actress
Vocabulary lists containing actress
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Metcalf won best featured actress for her portrayal of Willie Loman’s protective wife, Linda Loman, in “Death of a Salesman.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026
British actress Manville won the first Tony of her career for her performance as Jocasta in the Greek tragedy Oedipus.
From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026
The latter for featured actress for her portrayal of Willy Loman’s protective wife, Linda, in “Death of a Salesman.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026
Monroe’s centenary arrives this month amid a push to re-establish her as a serious actress and a multidimensional person.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
“Naw, Miss Carrie, we didn’t see no Shakespeare. But we seen a stage play. The main actress shore was a looker.”
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
