narrator
gb/nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/ us/nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
B2
Inglés
~ 5300
Acepciones
0 acepciones
Sustantivo
B2
entity
1
Person or voice telling a story
The person or voice that tells the story in a book, movie, or other show.
Patrón de uso:
the/a narrator of [a book/film/story]
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes use "narrator" to mean any person speaking in real life, for example in a normal conversation or a class presentation. In everyday situations, "speaker" or "presenter" is more natural. Another common confusion is between "author" and "narrator": the author writes the book, while the narrator is the voice that tells the story inside the book or film and may be a character.
Sinónimos
storyteller (More general and often suggests live or oral telling, not specifically tied to books or films.)
|
voice-over (Used especially in film and video for the recorded voice that explains or comments on the images.)
|
commentator (Common for sports or news; describes events but usually in real time, not in a fictional story.)
Antónimos
listener (Focuses on the person who receives the story, the opposite role of the one who tells it.)
|
audience (Refers collectively to the people watching or listening, not the one speaking.)
Colocaciones
the narrator of the story
|film narrator
|off-screen narrator
|narrator's voice
|voice-over narrator
|story narrator
Temas
literature
|media
|storytelling
|arts_entertainment
|communication
Ejemplos
- The narrator describes the town in rich, poetic detail.
- In the documentary, the narrator explains the science behind the experiment.
- The film uses a child narrator to make the story feel more personal.
- As the chapter begins, the narrator shifts from the past to the present.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The narrator tells us what happens in the book.
- At the start of the movie, the narrator speaks about the city.
- The narrator has a deep, calm voice.
- The narrator of the story is an old man.
Sustantivo
literary
C1
entity
2
Narrative voice as a literary device
The special voice or "person" inside a story that tells us what happens, which is not always the same as the real writer.
Patrón de uso:
an [adjective] narrator in [a novel/story]
Error frecuente:
Learners often think the narrator always equals the author. In many literary discussions, "narrator" is treated as a separate voice or character, even in first-person stories. Another confusion is between the narrator and the main character: the narrator may be a side character or even unnamed, and in some texts there may be more than one narrator.
Sinónimos
narrative voice (Highlights the stylistic and tonal qualities of the narrator as a literary device.)
|
narrative persona (Stresses that the narrator is a created "person" or mask used by the author.)
Antónimos
author (Refers to the real person who writes the work, contrasted with the constructed narrative voice inside the text.)
Colocaciones
unreliable narrator
|first-person narrator
|third-person narrator
|omniscient narrator
|narrator's perspective
|narrator's point of view
Temas
literature
|education
|storytelling
|arts_entertainment
|communication
Ejemplos
- The novel's unreliable narrator forces the reader to question every event.
- By choosing a child narrator, the author creates a sense of innocence and confusion.
- The first-person narrator never reveals his real name, which adds mystery.
- An omniscient narrator allows the story to move smoothly between characters' inner thoughts.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- In this book, the narrator is not the author.
- The narrator in the story may lie to the reader.
- The teacher asked us if we trust the narrator.
- This story uses a first-person narrator who says "I".
Gramática
Expresiones
first-person narrator
1/fˈɚst pˈɚsən nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
Narrator who speaks as “I”
A narrator who tells the story using "I" or "we" and is a character in the story.
Ejemplos
- The novel uses a first-person narrator to create intimacy.
- With a first-person narrator, the reader only knows what that character knows.
- The teacher asked us to rewrite the scene with a first-person narrator.
omniscient narrator
1/ɑmnˈɪʃənt nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
All-knowing third-person narrator
A third-person narrator who knows everything in the story, including all characters' thoughts and secret actions.
Ejemplos
- An omniscient narrator can explain the history of the entire world in a few paragraphs.
- The novel begins with an omniscient narrator but later narrows to one character's mind.
- Writers today often avoid an omniscient narrator to create a more limited, realistic view.
third-person narrator
1/θˈɚd pˈɚsən nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
Outside narrator using “he/she/they”
A narrator who is not a character in the story and talks about the characters using "he", "she", or "they".
Ejemplos
- Most classic novels are told by a third-person narrator.
- A third-person narrator can move quickly between different places and characters.
- The story shifts from a first-person to a third-person narrator in the final chapter.
unreliable narrator
1/ˌʌnɹɪlˈaɪəbəl nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
Narrator who cannot be trusted
A narrator who does not tell the story in a fully true or clear way, so the reader cannot fully trust what they say.
Ejemplos
- The twist ending reveals that the book has an unreliable narrator.
- An unreliable narrator makes the reader work harder to find the real story.
- Film critics praised the use of an unreliable narrator to create suspense.
unreliable narrator
1/ˌʌnɹɪlˈaɪəbəl nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
storyteller you cannot fully trust
A narrator who may not tell the truth or may be wrong.
Ejemplos
- The novel uses an unreliable narrator, so the reader has to question every detail.
- Halfway through the film, you realize the narrator has been unreliable all along.
voice-over narrator
1/vˈɔɪs ˈoʊvɚ nˈɛɹeɪtɚ/
fixed phrase
Narrator speaking over images
A person whose voice we hear explaining or telling a story while we watch pictures in a film or video.
Ejemplos
- The documentary relies on a voice-over narrator to connect the interviews.
- A voice-over narrator introduces each chapter of the series.
- They hired a famous actor to be the voice-over narrator for the commercial.