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• mime
  mime

  noun

  the art or technique of portraying a character, mood, idea, or narration by gestures and bodily movements; pantomime.
• MIME
  MIME

  abbreviation

  multipurpose internet mail extensions

mime

American  

[mahym, meem] / maɪm, mim /

noun

• mimes
  plural

1. the art or technique of portraying a character, mood, idea, or narration by gestures and bodily movements; pantomime.

2. an actor who specializes in this art.

3. an ancient Greek or Roman farce that depended for effect largely upon ludicrous actions and gestures.

4. a player in such a farce.

5. mimic.

6. a jester, clown, or comedian.

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verb (used with object)

• mimes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• mimed,
  past participle,  past
• miming
  present participle

1. to mimic.

2. to act in mime.

verb (used without object)

• mimes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• mimed,
  past participle,  past
• miming
  present participle

1. to play a part by mime or mimicry.

mime ¹ British  

/ maɪm /

noun

1. the theatrical technique of expressing an idea or mood or portraying a character entirely by gesture and bodily movement without the use of words

2. Also called: mime artist. a performer specializing in such a technique, esp a comic actor

3. a dramatic presentation using such a technique

4. 1. a comic performance depending for effect largely on exaggerated gesture and physical action

   2. an actor in such a performance

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verb

1. to express (an idea) in actions or gestures without speech

2. (of singers or musicians) to perform as if singing (a song) or playing (a piece of music) that is actually prerecorded

MIME ² British  

abbreviation

1. multipurpose internet mail extensions

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mimer
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• mimes
  plural

Participles

• miming
  present
• mimed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• mime
  simple
• mimes
  simple
• have mimed
  perfect
• has mimed
  perfect
• am miming
  progressive
• are miming
  progressive
• is miming
  progressive
• have been miming
  perfect progressive
• has been miming
  perfect progressive

Past

• mimed
  simple
• had mimed
  perfect
• was miming
  progressive
• were miming
  progressive
• had been miming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will mime
  simple
• will have mimed
  perfect
• will be miming
  progressive
• will have been miming
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of mime

1610–20; < Latin mīmus < Greek mîmos imitator, mime, akin to mīmeîsthai to copy, imitate

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Explanation

A mime is a performer who uses exaggerated facial expressions and body movements — instead of words — to communicate with his audience. You may have seen a mime pretending she's trapped in an invisible box, using gestures to make it appear that she is pushing against walls and a ceiling. Many mimes also wear clown-like makeup, wear simple clothing, and refuse to speak. You can use the word mime as a verb as well, to describe what you do when you imitate your least favorite teacher for the amusement of your friends. The Greek root word is mimos, "imitator, actor, or buffoon."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mime mimes mimed miming

During live shoots, however, background actors stay silent and mime their conversations, “a skill set in and of itself,” Gemmill says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026

Yet, these supposedly most-promising stars are mostly hapless wannabes leaning on their skills in nunchucks and mime.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026

Style: Dylan performed in mime makeup and a broad-brimmed hat bedecked in flowers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 11, 2024

Maybe that mime on the beach who nearly drowned.

From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2024

If I drop out of high school, I could be a mime.

From "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson

"Like this," she says, laughing as she mimes the song's signature perfume-spraying move.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

He fidgets with a pair of eyeglasses and points a knobby index finger to underscore a point, jiggles his leg restlessly and, at one point, mimes playing guitar.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

We watch on the monitors as Bruccoleri perfectly mimes the piano along to a track and unleashes out-of-tune vocals that are horribly dour.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

Bogotá’s unorthodox mayor, Antanas Mockus—who rose to fame after mooning student protesters and deployed mimes to control traffic—viewed the activity as a gambit “to achieve self-regulation in the behavior among citizens.”

From Slate ● Dec. 22, 2024

“I told her the coyote is like a cute wild dog, and her eyes just went—” He mimes eyes exploding open.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Then he handed it to Goncalves, who mimed drinking from the ball before spiking it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

Running her hand through her brittle white hair, she mimed heating water on a gas stove to wash herself in the cold mornings.

From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026

She was the only actor who actually kissed Romano during the audition, while the rest just mimed it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 24, 2025

He pretended his group were teenagers from Chester, who mimed along to the video for the song.

From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2025

I saw the cell phone on Dr. Fiona’s belt and signaled to her that I wanted it—I mimed dialing on my palm, then brought the “phone” to my ear.

From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai

After the tour's opened in Dublin on Tuesday, Katseye were accused of miming throughout their set.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

Son put his finger to his lips in the universal “shhh” sign and then did his patented camera celebration — click! — miming a snapshot.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026

Alicia Washington’s direction was clear, though she was understandably flummoxed about how to stage musician characters who don’t play their instruments and resorted to miming and posing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025

Ward lobbed one up for receiver Kyle Williams, who beat cornerback Travis Hunter so thoroughly that he immediately held up his wrist, miming CU quarterback Shedeur Sanders’ signature celebration.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 18, 2023

“We hungry,” a ruddy-cheeked man announced to her in overly loud pidgin, miming the act of eating.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

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