cosplay

1 of 2

noun

cos·​play ˈkäz-ˌplā 

ˈkäs-

plural cosplays

: the activity or practice of dressing up as a character from a work of fiction (such as a comic book, video game, or television show)

In cosplay, a good costume is as much about creativity with materials and construction as it is about the outcome. So while some people spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on custom outfits for cons, many more invest in time, using cheap materials and household items to transform themselves into characters of superhuman, mythical proportions.

—Jamal Jordan

—often used before another noun

cosplay fans

Festivities would not be complete without a cosplay competition.

—Charlotte Bray

cosplay

2 of 2

verb

cosplayed; cosplaying; cosplays

1

intransitive : to engage in cosplay

cosplaying as anime characters

The positive reaction he received from fellow conventioneers felt so good that he's been cosplaying ever since.

—Pam Kragen

2

transitive : to dress up as (a fictional character) in cosplay

She said she has cosplayed other women in science fiction or fantasy, but Wonder Woman is the first woman superhero, and one of the earliest representations of a strong, capable woman she saw growing up.

—Rebecca White

cosplaying noun

Cosplaying is a big, colorful part of Tokyo in Tulsa and it's safe to say that, other than Halloween, Broken Arrow has never been populated by this many costumed characters.

—Jimmie Tramel

a cosplaying event

Did you know?

If you enjoy cosplaying as your favorite anime character (say, Nezuko Kamada from Demon Slayer or Luffy from One Piece), you’ve got yourself a special, lexicographical twofer of words that were borrowed from English into Japanese and then back into English. In Japanese, anime is short for animēshiyon, which comes from the English word animation, referring to an animated cartoon. Japanese users similarly took the English words costume and play (as in role-play) and combined them into the word kosuchūmupurē, or kosupure for short, which was reborrowed into English as cosplay, first as a noun, and later as a verb. It's not required that one choose an anime character to cosplay, however—any fictional character will do, and probably has done! People are even starting to use cosplay figuratively to mean “to pretend to be,” as in “her chiweenie likes to cosplay as a much bigger dog whenever they visit the dog park.”

Examples of cosplay in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

These movies are part history cosplay, part acting obstacle course. —David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2024

The video, which has received nearly 4 million views, sparked an online debate about the difference between authenticity and cosplay. —Jessica Roy Kristín Braga Wright, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2024

The yearly comic convention caters to a wide-range of pop cultural interests — from Star Wars to Star Trek, cosplay, anime, manga and comic books, as well as vendors selling toys, apparel and lots more. —The Indianapolis Star, 12 Mar. 2024

Plenty of customers already use the space to design cosplay, home decor and mechanical parts, O’Hair said. —Thomas Goodwin Smith, Baltimore Sun, 5 Feb. 2024

In recent public testimony, Kansas state Attorney General Kris Kobach engaged in some chemist cosplay and informed the committee that Kansas may use helium if nitrogen is not available. —Joel B. Zivot, STAT, 26 Feb. 2024

Attendees, often dressed in incredibly elaborate outfits, participate in anime music video competitions, bid on artwork, walk in a fashion show or take part in live-action cosplay. —Chris Kelly, Washington Post, 15 Feb. 2024

Since the film’s premiere, the hat has become a key piece of Oppenheimer cosplay and Halloween costumes. —Valli Herman, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2024

In June of 2015, while serving as president of a local NAACP chapter in Washington state, she was outed for racial cosplay. —Jason Parham, WIRED, 19 Feb. 2024

Verb

Something that sticks out to her now are those fans who cosplay as her version of Rogue — even men. —Nick Romano, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2024

Get this for the friend who likes to cosplay as a very good baker and who doesn’t like to skimp on the decadence. —Kate Kassin, Bon Appétit, 29 Nov. 2023

While many Gossip Girl fans will cosplay as Serena van der Woodsen this Thanksgiving, Blake Lively is walking around New York City dressed as the holiday itself. —Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 17 Nov. 2023

En route, Ward doesn’t miss his chance to cosplay the locals. —Khari Nixon, Spin, 28 Aug. 2023

Harbaugh’s suspension gives UM an excuse to cosplay as the oppressed. —Jimmy Watkins, cleveland, 6 Sep. 2023

Dedicated to languid days in seaside villas, Tomato Girl Summer encourages the non-voyagers to cosplay a vacation to Southern Europe, particularly Italy. —Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 24 July 2023

Doja Cat Lee thinks Doja Cat is the most likely to cosplay Choupette this Monday. —Vulture, 30 Apr. 2023

The fan also mentioned how Sandoval essentially cosplays as a server while also failing at being an entertainer. —Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 27 June 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

cos(tume) entry 1 + play entry 1, after Japanese kosupure, short for kosuchūmupurē, borrowed from English costume + (role) play

Note: The Japanese word was allegedly introduced in print by the Japanese publisher and media producer Noboyuki Takahashi (born 1957) in the June, 1983 issue of the magazine Mai Anime/My Anime (see Brian Ashcraft and Luke Plunkett, Cosplay World [Prestel, 2014], pp. 18-20; the authors quote from an interview with Takahashi and reproduce pages from the magazine).

Verb

derivative of cosplay entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1993, in the meaning defined above

Verb

2002, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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