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Glite Dictionary
Mary Pickford

Mary Pickford

2 6.0
A Canadian-born American actress famous for her roles in silent films and for helping build early Hollywood
  • proper noun
  • /ˈmɛri ˈpɪkfərd/
: Mary Pickford
  • The museum held an exhibition dedicated to the life and career of Mary Pickford.

Examples

  • Did you know that Mary Pickford co-founded United Artists?

  • Mary Pickford was a groundbreaking actress whose performances in Mary Pickford films captivated audiences around the world.

  • Mary Pickford was regarded as one of the most influential actresses of the silent film era.

  • Many historians credit Mary Pickford with helping to shape the early Hollywood film industry.

  • The legendary actress Mary Pickford was known as "America's Sweetheart."

  • The film community remembers Mary Pickford as a pioneering figure who helped shape the early years of Hollywood.

  • In her career, Mary Pickford became known as America's sweetheart, renowned for her charm and talent on screen.

Surface Forms

Mary Pickford main

Morphology

Mary + Pickford

This is a proper name referring to a specific historical person; the constituent parts 'Mary' and 'Pickford' are personal names and do not compose a meaning about silent-film stardom. A B1 learner who knows the words as names would not be able to derive the biographical/occupational information without external world knowledge, so the expression is non-compositional.

Etymology

Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born actress who became famous in the early days of movies for playing lively little girls on screen and for her curly hair and bright smile in 'silent films'. She also helped start movie companies, so today her name means one of the first big movie stars and someone who helped build early Hollywood.