to portray oneself as
43
5.3
- phrasal verb
- /pɔrˈtreɪ wʌnˈsɛlf æz/
:
presentarse como
- With him, she would never have to portray herself as regal or lofty.
- portray themselves as victims
- people portray themselves as
- portray itself as a party
Examples
-
In your next campaign spot, we want to portray the Prestons as your typical normal American family.
-
He tries to portray himself as a confident leader in front of his team.
-
The librarians thus wanted to portray the profession as attractive and important by describing their personal experiences.
Academic text (2015) -
Your Honor, Counselor is attempting to portray my client as a hideous manifestation of evil and corruption.
Fiction book (1993) -
Histrionics still have a part, but the elite portray themselves as objective analysts and not passionate partisans.
Academic text (1990) -
In her social media posts, she often portrays herself as an adventurer exploring the world.
-
Many politicians portray themselves as champions of the people during election campaigns.
Synonyms
126
2.6
Describe something in a particular way to show an idea
100
3.7
To describe yourself using a certain name or title
69
8.0
To claim to be or do something, often without proof
65
3.7
To seem to other people in a particular way
10
6.8
To show your skills and good points to get opportunities
Make yourself look good to other people
Express your ideas and personality clearly so others understand you
How Favorable
18
6.9
43
5.3
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to present or describe oneself in a particular way' is directly derivable from combining 'portray' (depict/describe) with the reflexive 'oneself' and the role-marking 'as' (in the capacity/role of). This is a transparent, compositional pattern common across languages and should be predictable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.
Etymology
Portray oneself as comes from painting: to portray means to make a picture of oneself that shows a chosen look or role. So imagine someone asking an artist to paint them looking brave so others will see them that way, and portray oneself as now means 'to present yourself' in a certain way.