portrait

American  

[pawr-trit, -treyt, pohr-] / ˈpɔr trɪt, -treɪt, ˈpoʊr- /

noun

1. a likeness of a person, especially of the face, as a painting, drawing, or photograph.

   a gallery of family portraits.

2. a verbal picture or description, usually of a person.

   a biography that provides a fascinating portrait of an 18th-century rogue.

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adjective

1. Digital Technology. relating to or producing vertical, upright orientation of computer or other digital output, with lines of data parallel to the two shorter sides of a page or screen. Compare landscape.

portrait British  

/ -treɪt, ˈpɔːtrɪt /

noun

1. 1. a painting, drawing, sculpture, photograph, or other likeness of an individual, esp of the face

   2. ( as modifier )

      a portrait gallery

2. a verbal description or picture, esp of a person's character

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adjective

1. printing (of a publication or an illustration in a publication) of greater height than width Compare landscape

Other Word Forms

• portraitlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of portrait

1560–70; < Middle French: a drawing, image, etc., noun use of past participle of portraire to portray

Explanation

A portrait is a portrayal of a person, usually showing the person's face (but not always). A portrait can be a painting, a photograph, an ink drawing, a sculpture — or even a description in words or in a film. Portrait is a term often used when talking about artwork. Go to an art museum, especially one that has a historic collection, and you'll likely see many portraits hanging on the walls. Formal portraits were commissioned by wealthy people throughout history. A portrait can also be a written description of someone's appearance or character. If you describe your Mom in such detail that everyone can imagine what she's like, you've created a portrait of her.

Example Sentences

The last sitting California governor with facial hair in his official portrait was James “Sunny Jim” Rolph, a cheery Republican with a toothbrush mustache who died of a heart attack in office in 1934.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026

The obverse or heads side of the 50p features the official coin portrait of King Charles III.

From BBC • May 20, 2026

Bazuin: We wanted to disrupt expectations audiences might have and to make it a more human portrait.

From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026

At the entrance of a sprawling military encampment some 100 kilometres away from Derna, a towering portrait of Haftar overlooked the scene.

From Barron's • May 17, 2026

In Tokyo a decade later, there were so many visitors that each was allowed no more than ten seconds in front of the portrait.

From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day

Related Words

• account
• characterization
• depiction
• figure
• image
• likeness
• model
• painting
• photograph
• picture
• portrayal
• profile
• silhouette
• sketch
• snapshot
• vignette