role

role  (rl)

n.

1. also rôle A character or part played by a performer.

2. The characteristic and expected social behavior of an individual.

3. A function or position. See Synonyms at function.

4. Linguistics The function of a word or construction, as in a sentence.

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[French rôle, from Old French rolle, roll of parchment (on which an actor's part was written), from Latin rotula, diminutive of rota, wheel; see roll.]

Word History: We all play many roles in life, such as parent or teacher, and it is not difficult to see how this sense of the word role is related to its meaning in the theater. Role, which is first recorded in English in 1606, came to us from French already having the sense "a part one has to play." The word rôle in its earlier history (Old French rolle) had meant "a roll, as of parchment," particularly with reference to a manuscript roll. The word could also mean "a legal document" or "a list or register." From such uses it also came to refer to the text from which an actor learned a part. This use brought the word into the world of the theater where it has played an important role ever since. The theatrical meaning was then generalized to include parts played off the stage.

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role

Noun

1. a task or function: their role in international relations

2. an actor's part in a production [French]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	role - the actions and activities assigned to or required or expected of a person or group; "the function of a teacher"; "the government must do its part"; "play its role" function, office, part duty - work that you are obliged to perform for moral or legal reasons; "the duties of the job" capacity - a specified function; "he was employed in the capacity of director"; "he should be retained in his present capacity at a higher salary" hat - an informal term for a person's role; "he took off his politician's hat and talked frankly" portfolio - the role of the head of a government department; "he holds the portfolio for foreign affairs" lieu, stead, place, position - the post or function properly or customarily occupied or served by another; "can you go in my stead?"; "took his place"; "in lieu of" second fiddle - a secondary role or function; "he hated to play second fiddle to anyone"
	2.	role - an actor's portrayal of someone in a play; "she played the part of Desdemona" persona, theatrical role, character, part personation, portrayal, characterization, enactment - acting the part of a character on stage; dramatically representing the character by speech and action and gesture bit part, minor role - a small role heavy - a serious (or tragic) role in a play hero - the principal character in a play or movie or novel or poem ingenue - the role of an innocent artless young woman in a play name part, title role - the role of the character after whom the play is named heroine - the main good female character in a work of fiction baddie, villain - the principal bad character in a film or work of fiction
	3.	role - what something is used for; "the function of an auger is to bore holes"; "ballet is beautiful but what use is it?" function, purpose, use usefulness, utility - the quality of being of practical use raison d'etre - the purpose that justifies a thing's existence
	4.	role - normal or customary activity of a person in a particular social setting; "what is your role on the team?" activity - any specific behavior; "they avoided all recreational activity" gender role - the overt expression of attitudes that indicate to others the degree of your maleness or femaleness; "your gender role is the public expression of your gender identity" position - (in team sports) the role assigned to an individual player; "what position does he play?"

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role

noun 1. job, part, position, post, task, duty, function, capacity

noun 2. part, character, representation, portrayal, impersonation

Translations

role [rəul] n → papel m; rol m

role [rəul] n → rôle m

role [rəul] n → Rolle f

role [rəul] n → ruolo