ENGLISH
REFERENCE

persona

n. countable
C1 Advanced US //pɝˈsoʊnə// UK //pɜːsˈəʊnɐ// per·sona

n. the public image or personality you show to other people. It is often different from who you really are when you are alone.

n. the public face or social facade that an individual presents to the world, often distinct from their private self. Frequently used in literary or psychological contexts to describe a constructed identity.


SIMPLE

He adopts a confident persona when he is on stage.

CONTEXTUAL

The politician worked hard to maintain a friendly, approachable persona during the election campaign.

COMPLEX

In her latest novel, the author adopts the persona of a nineteenth-century explorer to critique the colonial attitudes of that era.

Synonyms
Origin

Borrowed from Latin persōna (“mask; character”), of uncertain origin. Suggested to be from Etruscan 𐌘𐌄𐌓𐌔𐌖 (φersu, “mask; masked individual; actor”), which could be a loan from Ancient Greek πρόσωπον (prósōpon, “face; appearance; mask used in ancient theatre to denote a character or, more generally, a social role”). Doublet of person and parson.

Usage

The plural form can be either 'personas' or the Latinate 'personae'.

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