Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin

1 4.5

An English actor and comedian who played a sad little man in films, wearing baggy pants and a bowler hat

proper noun

: Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin

The character created by Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin became a symbol of resilience during hard times.

Examples

Many consider Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin's films to be masterpieces of silent cinema.
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin received an Honorary Academy Award for his contributions to film.
I watched a documentary about Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin yesterday.
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin is a legendary figure in cinema history.
Many consider Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin's films to be masterpieces of silent cinema.
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin received an Honorary Academy Award for his contributions to film.
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin is a legendary figure in cinema history.

Synonyms

Chaplin

vsSir Charles Spencer Chaplin

46 2.0

A famous English actor and comedian who created the Tramp character in silent films

uses the formal personal name and stresses costume and biographical dates

Surface Forms

Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin main

Morphology

Sir + Charles + Spencer + Chaplin

This item is a proper name (a full personal name with the honorific 'Sir'). Knowing the constituents only signals that it is a person and that 'Sir' is an honorific, but the specific identity and biographical meaning (that he was an English comedian/filmmaker, dates, etc.) cannot be derived from the words themselves; proper names are arbitrary and therefore unpredictable for learners.

Etymology

Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin is the name of the famous English 'actor' and 'comedian' who made the small, sad-but-funny figure called the Little Tramp with baggy pants and a bowler hat. Because his silent films used clear gestures and gentle humour, his name now stands for an important early film maker and a symbol of hope in hard times.