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.

He said he thought he had been portraying a reasonable picture of his competency at the time.

From BBC • Mar. 4, 2020

Maria Butina’s lawyers had long contested the way prosecutors had been portraying their client as a character straight out of a spy novel.

From Slate • Sep. 9, 2018

But eventually LeRoy’s story began to fall apart, revealing a fraud perpetrated by Laura Albert, an obscure novelist who had been writing under LeRoy’s name, and Savannah Knoop, who had been portraying LeRoy in public.

From New York Times • Feb. 20, 2017

His face, which had been portraying an amusing mixture of perplexity and admiration, broke into a smile which encompassed all his features.

From The Parts Men Play by Baxter, Arthur Beverley

The color stole into pretty Margery's cheeks as she heard these words, and a ray of comfort gleamed on an imagination that, for the last hour, had been portraying the worst.

From Oak Openings by Cooper, James Fenimore