pantomime

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Pronunciation

• (British) IPA: /ˈpantəˌmʌɪm/
• (America, Canada) IPA: /ˈpæntəˌmaɪm/

Noun

pantomime

1. (now rare) A Classical comic actor, especially one who works mainly through gesture and mime. [from 17th c.]

   • [He] saw a pantomime perform so well that he could follow the performance from the action alone.

2. (historical) The drama in ancient Greece and Rome featuring such performers; or (later) any of various kinds of performance modelled on such work. [from 17th c.]
3. (UK) A traditional theatrical entertainment, originally based on the commedia dell'arte, but later aimed mostly at children and involving physical comedy, topical jokes, call and response, and fairy-tale plots. [from 18th c.]
4. Gesturing without speaking; dumb-show, mime. [from 18th c.]
   • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, chapter 26

     A staid, steadfast man, whose life for the most part was a telling pantomime of action, and not a tame chapter of sounds.

   • 1994, Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom, Abacus 2010, p. 26:

     In pantomime, Chief Joyi would fling his spear and creep along the veld as he narrated the victories and defeats.

Related terms

• dame
• dumb show
• mime
• pantomimical

Translations

• German: Pantomime
• Portuguese: pantomima
• Russian: пантоми́ма

Translations

• French: pantomime
• German: Pantomime
• Portuguese: pantomima, mímica
• Russian: пантоми́ма

Verb

pantomime (pantomimes, present participle pantomiming; past and past participle pantomimed)

1. (transitive) To make (a gesture) without speaking.

   I pantomimed steering a car; he understood, and tossed the keys to me.

2. (transitive) To entertain others by silent gestures or actions.

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