character
pronunciation
How to pronounce character in British English:
UK [ˈkærəktə(r)]
How to pronounce character in American English:
US [ˈkærəktər]
-
- Noun:
- an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story)
- a characteristic property that defines the apparent individual nature of something
- the inherent complex of attributes that determine a persons moral and ethical actions and reactions
- an actor's portrayal of someone in a play
- a person of a specified kind (usually with many eccentricities)
- good repute
- a formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person's qualifications and dependability
- a written symbol that is used to represent speech
-
- Verb:
- engrave or inscribe characters on
Word Origin
- character
- character: [14] The ultimate source of character is Greek kharaktér, a derivative of the verb kharássein ‘sharpen, engrave, cut’, which in turn came from kharax ‘pointed stake’. Kharaktér meant ‘engraved mark’, and hence was applied metaphorically to the particular impress or stamp which marked one thing as different from another – its ‘character’. The word came into English via Latin charactēr and Old French caractere. Characteristic followed in the 17th century.=> gash
- character (n.)
- mid-14c., carecter, "symbol marked or branded on the body;" mid-15c., "symbol or drawing used in sorcery," from Old French caratere "feature, character" (13c., Modern French caractère), from Latin character, from Greek kharakter "engraved mark," also "symbol or imprint on the soul," also "instrument for marking," from kharassein "to engrave," from kharax "pointed stake," from PIE root *gher- (4) "to scrape, scratch." Meaning extended in ancient times by metaphor to "a defining quality."You remember Eponina, who kept her husband alive in an underground cavern so devotedly and heroically? The force of character she showed in keeping up his spirits would have been used to hide a lover from her husband if they had been living quietly in Rome. Strong characters need strong nourishment. [Stendhal "de l'Amour," 1822]Meaning "sum of qualities that define a person" is from 1640s. Sense of "person in a play or novel" is first attested 1660s, in reference to the "defining qualities" he or she is given by the author. Meaning "a person" in the abstract is from 1749; especially "eccentric person" (1773). Colloquial sense of "chap, fellow" is from 1931. The Latin ch- spelling was restored from 1500s. Character actor attested from 1861; character assassination from 1888; character-building (n.) from 1886.
Synonym
Example
- 1. The town itself is a character .
- 2. Character is the basis of all leadership .
- 3. It also tends to amplify character traits .
- 4. The murderer is the book 's central character .
- 5. Much of the programming has a distinct social-media character .