typecast
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cast (a performer) in a role that requires characteristics of physique, manner, personality, etc., similar to those possessed by the performer.
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to cast (a performer) repeatedly in a kind of role closely patterned after that of the actor's previous successes.
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to stereotype.
He realizes now he's been typecast as an executive errand boy.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of typecast
Explanation
To typecast someone is to repeatedly identify or represent them as a stereotype. Directors and casting agents routinely typecast actors, choosing them for extremely similar roles over and over again. Think of an actor who always plays a superhero and is never chosen to play a romantic lead or the main character in a historical drama. That actor is being typecast. Sometimes performers intentionally seek out unusual or challenging roles in order to avoid this kind of stereotyping: if the child star of several peppy sitcoms suddenly plays the villain in a gory horror movie, you can bet that she doesn't want to be typecast.
Vocabulary lists containing typecast
Theater - Middle School
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Posted
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Theater - High School
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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.
Well, perhaps Federico Dimarco can be typecast as a full-back, or more likely a wing-back, but in Inter boss Cristian Chivu's 3-5-2 this season the Italian has the output of a winger or forward.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“I was typecast to the point where I didn’t make a film for five years after ‘Harold and Maude,’” Cort told The Times in 1996.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 11, 2026
“I am up against two things now — AI and ageism. Being typecast is an industrywide issue, but I did hope that wouldn’t be the case with audiobook narration since the voice is so flexible.”
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 23, 2025
Known for her brutal hitting, Sabalenka has been typecast as a hard-court specialist throughout her career, with all three of her major singles titles won on that surface.
From BBC • Jun. 7, 2025
Volpe does not like to typecast his actors, though in high school it is sometimes unavoidable.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
