俳優

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 俳優 is read as はいゆう and is a noun for an actor who performs a role on stage or in a screen production.
• Basic usage: A young actor playing an elderly person appears in 若い俳優が老人の役を演じる, while practicing a dialect for a role appears in 俳優が役作りのため方言を練習する.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Actor and role
  • The person acting is the 俳優, while the part that person plays is the 役; keep the two referents distinct.