An actor, actress, or player (see terminology) is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity. The ancient Greek word for an actor, hypokrites, when rendered as a verb means "to interpret"; in this sense, an actor is one who interprets a dramatic character.
The word "actor" refers to one who acts, whilst "actress" refers specifically to a female who acts. The English word "actress" does not derive from the Latin "actrix", probably not even by way of French "actrice"; according to the Oxford English Dictionary, "actress" was "probably formed independently" in English. The OED also points out that originally "'actor' was used for both sexes". As "actress" is a specifically feminine word, some feminist groups assert that the word "actress" is sexist. This is a minority view, almost unheard of outside of the United States. "Actress" remains a commonly used word; however, while "actor" was traditionally used in the context of the performing arts to refer to male performers only, it is now frequently used to refer to both men and women. |
