nonactor
noun
non·ac·tor
ˌnän-ˈak-tər 
also -ˌtȯr
: a person who is not an actor
… I'm still inspired by his improvisation, use of real life, use of real people, nonactors …—
Jeff Goldblum
Jeff GoldblumExamples of nonactor in a Sentence
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For nonactors, preening in front of a camera with directors calling out emotions to convey merely with facial expressions and gestures can be cringe inducing.
—Katherine Rosman, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2018
Willem Dafoe plays, with great grace, the motel manager, but the remainder of the cast members are almost all nonactors.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Sep. 2017
Contrary to popular belief, the director did not, for the most part, use nonactors in this film
—David Mermelstein, WSJ, 7 Aug. 2017
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Katherine Rosman, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2018
Willem Dafoe plays, with great grace, the motel manager, but the remainder of the cast members are almost all nonactors.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Sep. 2017
Contrary to popular belief, the director did not, for the most part, use nonactors in this film
—David Mermelstein, WSJ, 7 Aug. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Nonactor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonactor. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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