actress
Americannoun
noun
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a woman who acts in a play, film, broadcast, etc
-
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
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.
After finding a listing for the Westchester house online, the actress said she was immediately drawn to the home in a “spiritual” way.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026
“She was an actress, a wife, a sister, a mother, an aunt, a friend, and she took on all those rolls with grace and a kind ferocity,” Molly Schrader wrote in her post.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
Italian-American actress Isabella Rossellini lends her voice to an audio guide for the exhibition, which brings together works from museums including France's Louvre.
From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026
Motherland spin-off Amandaland dominates the best comedy actress category with three nods - for Lucy Punch, Philippa Dunne and Jennifer Saunders.
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
“You might near as good a actress as Loma. I thought I’d jest lost the hang a-courtin’.”
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.
