persona

Pronunciation: /pɝˈsoʊnə/

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun an actor's portrayal of someone in a play
  2. noun (Jungian psychology) a personal facade that one presents to the world

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin persōna (“mask; character”), of uncertain origin. Suggested to be from Etruscan 𐌘𐌄𐌓𐌔𐌖 (φersu, “mask; masked individual; actor”), which could be a loan from Ancient Greek πρόσωπον (prósōpon, “face; appearance; mask used in ancient theatre to denote a character or, more generally, a social role”). Doublet of person and parson.

In classic literature

Synonyms

character, role, theatrical role, part

Semantic network

Broader (hypernyms)
portrayal
Narrower (hyponyms)
hero, heroine, heavy, bit part, title role, villain

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