How to Use pantomime in a Sentence

pantomime

1 of 2 noun
  • We saw pantomimes at the fair.
  • In the game of charades, one player uses pantomime to represent a word or phrase that the other players have to try to guess.
  • The rest of the class quickly grows bored with this whole pantomime.
    — Domenico Starnone, The Atlantic, 28 Sep. 2025
  • But it’s done in obvious pantomime, with nary a blot of fake blood.
    — Misha Berson, The Seattle Times, 12 June 2017
  • All his successful shows have been fables and fairy tales and pageants and pantomimes.
    — Steven Strogatz, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2017
  • Trump said at the time, using his thumb and index finger to pantomime firing a gun.
    — Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2018
  • The piece is a pantomime both between the two women and of the stodgy form of a lecture itself.
    — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Feb. 2023
  • This means guys who like to stand around at concerts and do drum pantomime get to swat the people in front of them twice as much.
    — David Lindquist, Indianapolis Star, 11 Jan. 2020
  • White pulled up in transition, tucking the ball toward his chin in a pantomime of his shot.
    — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2026
  • Saldaña is still the best at being a Na’vi, with her pantomime cat hisses.
    — Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2022
  • The problem with playing charades is that not all the players are able to decode the pantomime.
    — Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 15 Sep. 2025
  • He got drafted from the streets into the church to do pantomime and got into theater during high school.
    — Catherine Annie Hollingsworth, miamiherald, 3 June 2018
  • Service is vivacious almost to the point of pantomime.
    — Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 17 May 2026
  • What ends up entering people is simple—a harmless pantomime of the pathogen.
    — Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 21 July 2021
  • The watch-tap pantomime was meme-ready, but Swift’s words will hopefully result in real change.
    — Jason Lipshutz, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2019
  • The point of her pantomime seemed to be that even getting bombed was better than being hidden under a burka.
    — Rafia Zakaria, The New Republic, 12 June 2018
  • Shannon Willing as Bernadette, the deaf cook, speaks volumes through pantomime.
    — Patti Restivo, Laurel Leader, 17 Aug. 2017
  • If the male side of pantomime wrestling is contentious, the world of women’s WWE is even more so.
    — Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 16 Mar. 2023
  • His pantomime to the Sugar Plum Fairy was a clear and amusing rewind on the battle.
    — Ellen Dunkel, Philly.com, 10 Dec. 2017
  • The Four Seasons pantomime will not be the end of the care industry’s troubles.
    — The Economist, 14 Dec. 2017
  • Keystone was known for its slapstick comedies, and pantomime was more Chaplin’s comic genre.
    — Louis Menand, The New Yorker, 13 Nov. 2023
  • Face painter Laura Kalmakoff and makeup artist Alex Rivera paid homage to old-school pantomimes.
    — Devon Abelman, Allure, 13 Oct. 2017
  • And Adam’s dearest friends are a cousin and her female lover, who communicates only through pantomime.
    — Ron Charles, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2022
  • Some believe Redmond even taught Chaplin, famous as a pantomime, how to use sign language.
    — New York Times, 8 Apr. 2021
  • Even Ronald Reagan, who once starred opposite a chimp, would never resort to pantomime.
    — Dan Brooks, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2020
  • Mr Corbyn was variously portrayed as a pantomime villain and a threat to the nation.
    — The Economist, 7 Oct. 2017
  • Mr van Beurden’s plain speaking will earn him little credit from those determined to paint the firm as a pantomime villain.
    — The Economist, 4 July 2019
  • Her arms seem very loose, and Yeoh starts to sort of shuffle in her seat — a pantomime of movement that suggests both great purpose and the weight of the world on her back.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 7 Apr. 2022
  • Game after game, Parker would watch his Spurs teammate do the same pantomime on the sidelines during timeouts.
    — Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, 24 Feb. 2018
  • This production gives the story new life by casting it as a tale told by two out-of-work actors who find the old novel and embark on a pantomime version of it.
    — Ward Morehouse Iii, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Mar. 2018

pantomime

2 of 2 verb
  • He pantomimed someone talking on the phone.
  • Putin pantomimed not being able to hear the question and shrugged.
    — Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Are the bees, in fact, pantomiming the way itself?
    — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 6 Oct. 2025
  • Walking back to our site, Casper pantomimed catching a trout.
    — AFAR Media, 7 Aug. 2025
  • If Tess wants to pantomime breast-feeding while lauding the act, then good for her.
    — Brie Schwartz, Redbook, 28 June 2016
  • Carrera pantomimes wiping away tears.
    — Peter Wayne Moe, Longreads, 26 Mar. 2026
  • Throughout, Clark leaned into the mic, pantomiming the lyrics in her arm-length black gloves and cadet cap.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 18 Dec. 2025
  • Colbert held up a clenched hand and appeared to pantomime masturbation.
    — Callum Borchers, Washington Post, 19 July 2017
  • Mostert celebrates his touchdowns by pantomiming a surfer catching a wave.
    — Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 19 Jan. 2020
  • There are still some prohibitions, including anything that pantomimes the use of a weapon.
    — Bill Pennington, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2017
  • In the stands, filmmaker and Yankees fan Spike Lee pantomimed a call to the bullpen.
    — Stephanie Apstein, SI.com, 2 Oct. 2019
  • No more pantomiming the signing of a restaurant bill or pretending to scratch your head when the waiters ignore you.
    — Thomas Buckley, Bloomberg.com, 27 Feb. 2018
  • When Booher pantomimes her signature move, the belly bop, a great weight seems to lift from her large, slumping shoulders.
    — The Washington Post, cleveland.com, 20 June 2017
  • Amid smoke and clouds of dust, spectators ran the bases and pantomimed baseball players pitching, batting and sliding.
    — Joe Lapointe, Detroit Free Press, 12 July 2019
  • Hines-Allen shouted toward the ceiling and pantomimed a marksman loading a bow and arrow.
    — Jake Lourim, The Courier-Journal, 18 Mar. 2018
  • For example, Cogdill might ask applicants to pantomime a scene, such as walking across a frozen pond without skates.
    — Sara Mosle, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2020
  • As Randy pantomimed a whipping, Darryl gave a shriek that must have startled all of Stamford.
    — Tom Verducci, SI.com, 8 Aug. 2019
  • Decades later, in a cruel twist of fate, the Guthrie family is no longer pantomiming a kidnapping.
    — Chelsea Bailey, CNN Money, 7 Feb. 2026
  • The former Colorado standout pantomimed answers to reporters in the locker room.
    — Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Sanders actually pantomimed his answers, moving his mouth with no words coming out and smiling throughout.
    — Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 1 Oct. 2025
  • First, Wong clutches her face, knocking her red nerd glasses askew and pantomiming the feeling of a great gust of wind drying out her eyeballs.
    — Vogue, 11 May 2018
  • Lady Gaga's Harley Quinn appears to be pantomiming her puddin'.
    — Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2023
  • Why not offer an instruction or training sequence that asks players to pantomime certain moves, then display a checkmark and play a pleasant tone upon doing it right two or three times?
    — Sam MacHkovech, Ars Technica, 3 May 2022
  • Previous performances had involved pantomiming to pre-recorded audio; Birkin had something to prove.
    — Peter Debruge, Variety, 16 July 2023
  • Still, hosts Ludacris and Vanessa Hudgens pantomimed breathlessness throughout the night.
    — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 22 May 2017
  • Gratitude Researchers believe that that the orangutans can also pantomime stories to reminisce.
    — Joseph Calamia, Discover Magazine, 12 Aug. 2010
  • Ever the prankster, Jonathan could be seen pantomiming along with Calhoun’s non-verbal communications.
    — Chris Brodeur, courant.com, 10 May 2018
  • Both involve reality brushing up against your expectations, not knowing the language, trying to pantomime.
    — Nandini Balial, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2022
  • Wearing an oversized, oven-mitt type apparatus on his right hand, Gibson has been spotted pantomiming his pitching delivery in the bullpen and in the practice cages.
    — Mike Berardino, Twin Cities, 20 Feb. 2017
  • But unlike other classic Harmonix games, which ask you to pantomime your favorite bands, Fuser opens players up to a DJ's unique creation process.
    — Sam MacHkovech, Ars Technica, 30 June 2020

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pantomime.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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