stock character

American  

noun

1. a character in literature, theater, or film of a type quickly recognized and accepted by the reader or viewer and requiring no development by the writer.

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Etymology

Origin of stock character

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Iago, one of Shakespeare’s greatest villains, is an updated version of this stock character.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026

It’s a balance she strikes most astutely on “Good Wife,” on which she’s torn between thinking that title role is a worthy goal and seeing it as a tragic stock character.

From New York Times • Sep. 14, 2021

Jharrel Jerome does what he can to add some shading to Smush, to make this stock character his own.

From Salon • Sep. 16, 2020

Besson’s filmography mirrors the descent of this stock character so precisely, it could well all be his fault.

From The Guardian • Aug. 19, 2019

The quality and variety of the stories told in them are both very considerable, even without making allowance for what has been called the stock character of mediæval composition.

From The English Novel by Saintsbury, George

Related Words

• piece