portrayal

[pawr-trey-uhl, pohr-]

noun

1. the act of portraying.

2. a portrait.

Other Word Forms

• misportrayal noun
• nonportrayal noun
• preportrayal noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of portrayal¹

First recorded in 1840–50; portray + -al ²

Example Sentences

Dennis Hopper had an astonishingly large, multifaceted life, and so the portrayal of his story, in the hands of Mike Scott, is going to be equally complex.

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For those familiar with the bear from Peru, who first appeared on the scene in Bond's 1958 book, A Bear Called Paddington, the sketch is a somewhat different portrayal of the children's character.

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PBS’ ‘Maigret’ follows a long line of portrayals of the Parisian fictional detective created by Georges Simenon.

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Kotsur also hopes that his portrayal in “Black Rabbit” continues to further the breakthroughs for Deaf artists that were generated by the success of “CODA.”

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"Dave Cook, the guy I play, is still still around so you've got to try your best to make it accurate and to give a good portrayal of them," he says.

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Related Words

• description 
• imitation 
• portrait 
• representation