Mime Meaning: Act Out Silently

Meaning 1：act out silently (mime)

mime 🔊

/maɪm/

To act out a story or express feelings using only your body movements, gestures, and facial expressions, without speaking.

Mime artist performing trapped in glass box routine

act out silently 🔊

➕

/ækt aʊt ˈsaɪləntli/

To use facial expressions, body movements, and gestures to convey a story or emotion without using words.

📁 Category：Entertainment & Sports 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Greek 'mimos' meaning 'imitator'.

💡 Mnemonic

Think of a mime trapped in a glass box: 'mime' sounds like 'mimic' without a sound.

📖 Example

At the children's party, the entertainer mimed playing tennis so well that everyone knew exactly what he was doing. 🔊 At the children's party, the entertainer acted out playing tennis using only gestures, so well that everyone understood what he was doing.

🔗 Collocations

mime an action – to use gestures to demonstrate a specific action

mime a story – to tell a narrative through body movements and facial expressions

mime the words – to silently articulate the lyrics or speech with exaggerated mouth movements

🔄 Synonyms

pantomime (v.) – to express or represent by exaggerated or silent gesture

act out (v.) – to perform an action or role, often in a dramatic or exaggerated way

gesture (v.) – to make a movement of part of the body to express an idea or meaning

🚫 Antonyms

speak (v.) – to use words to communicate

verbalize (v.) – to express something in words

articulate (v.) – to pronounce words clearly and distinctly

🌱 Derivatives

mime (n.) – a person who performs mime

miming (n.) – the art or practice of performing mime

mimer (n.) – a performer who specializes in mime

📖 Cultural Story

Originates from ancient Greek theatre where 'mimos' referred to actors imitating life. The modern mime performance style was popularized in 19th-century France by artists like Jean-Gaspard Deburau.