racebend

R1A1C3E1B3E1N1D2

verb

To play the role of, or cast someone in the role of, a character of a different race or ethnicity.

Scrabble 13

Meanings

verbracebend (third-person singular simple present racebends, present participle racebending, simple past and past participle racebent)

present singular third person racebends · participle present racebending · participle past racebent · past racebent

  1. intransitiveTo play the role of, or cast someone in the role of, a character of a different race or ethnicity.

    Similar to [Denzel] Washington racebending to become Julius Caesar for an official production, […]

    2015, Kristen J. Warner, “ABC's Scandal and Black Women's Fandom”, in Elana Levine, editor, Cupcakes, Pinterest, and Ladyporn: Feminized Popular Culture in the Early Twenty-First Century, University of Illinois, →ISBN, page 39
    2 more examples

    Hollywood does not just innocently “racebend” a few characters for the sake of hiring the best actors.

    2014, Anna Lee, "Persons of color need representation in Hollywood", The Falconer (The Torrey Pines High School, San Diego, California), Volume 40, Issue 2, 26 September 2014, page A7

    […] in which white Jake Gyllenhaal and Emma Stone, respectively – 'racebend' and play characters of Asian descent.

    2015, Adolfo Aranjuez, "Power from a Different Perspective: Race, Gender and Grief in Big Hero 6", Screen Education, Number 79, Spring 2015, page 11

Origin

Cite this entry
APA

racebend. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/racebend

MLA

“racebend.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/racebend. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “racebend,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/racebend.

Source: racebend on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.