actress English · revision 5109

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=1586|origins=en actor, en -ess}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈæk.trəs/, /ˈæk.trɪs/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is formed [[af|en|actor|-ess]].^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) French actrice was sometimes used instead.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A woman who does something: 1586 in MWU, 1589 in the OED, the 1580s in Etymonline.^(MWU 2024)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) Cockeram's English Dictionarie (1623) defines actresse as “a woman doer”.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A woman who acts on the stage is from 1666 in the OED, 1700 in Etymonline,^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) when actor had at first been used for both sexes.^(OED 1989) ''As the actress said to the bishop'', marking a double meaning, is from 1935.^(OED 1989) Collins records the informal sense “a woman who puts on a false manner to deceive”.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1586 – a woman doer.^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1666 – a woman stage player.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1935 – ''as the actress said to the bishop''.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A woman who acts in plays, films or broadcasts.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(informal)'' A woman who puts on a false manner to [[deceive]] others.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[actressy]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[actor]]

+ * [[act]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}