mime

views updated Jun 08 2018

mime / mīm/ • n. 1. the theatrical technique of suggesting action, character, or emotion without words, using only gesture, expression, and movement. ∎ a theatrical performance or part of a performance using such a technique. ∎ an action or set of actions intended to convey the idea of another action or an idea or feeling: he performed a brief mime of someone fencing. ∎ a practitioner of mime or a performer in a mime. 2. (in ancient Greece and Rome) a simple farcical drama including mimicry.• v. [tr.] use gesture and movement without words in the acting of (a play or role). ∎ convey an impression of (an idea or feeling) by gesture and movement, without using words; mimic (an action or set of actions) in this way: he stands up and mimes throwing a spear.DERIVATIVES: mim·er n.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

MIME

views updated May 21 2018

MIME / mīm; ˈem ˈī ˈem ˈē/ • n. Comput. a standard for formatting files of different types, such as text, graphics, or audio, so they can be sent over the Internet and seen or played by a Web browser or e-mail application.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

mime

views updated May 23 2018

mime jester, buffoon; farcical drama of the Greeks and Romans. XVII. — L. mīmus — Gr. mîmos imitator, actor.
Hence vb. XVII. So mimeograph stencil device. XIX. irreg. f. Gr. mīméomai I imitate. mimetic pert. to imitation or mimicry. XVII. — Gr. mīmētikós. mimic pert. to a mime or buffoon; imitative; sb. burlesque performer; imitator XVI. — L. mīmicus — Gr. mīmikós. Hence mimic vb., mimicry XVII.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

MIME

views updated Jun 27 2018

MIME Acronym for multipurpose Internet messaging extensions. A system designed to support the encoding of information other than straightforward text, such as digitized audio or video signals, so as to allow the signals to be transferred as the contents of e-mail messages.

A Dictionary of Computing JOHN DAINTITH

Mime

views updated Jun 11 2018

Mime. The Nibelung dwarf, brother of Alberich, who rears Siegfried in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE

MIME

views updated May 17 2018

MIME (maɪm) multimedia Internet mail extension
• multipurpose Internet messaging extension

The Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations FRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH

mime

views updated May 21 2018

mi, me2 (mus.) third note of the scale in solmization. XVI. See UT.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

mime

views updated May 21 2018

mime In drama, the communication of mood, story and idea through the use of gestures, movements and facial expressions, without speech. It derives from Greek and Roman traditions.

World Encyclopedia