theatrical

adjective

1 a theatrical career:

stage, dramatic, thespian, dramaturgical;

show-business;

informal showbiz;

rare histrionic, theatric.

2 Henry looked over his shoulder with theatrical caution:

exaggerated, ostentatious, actressy, stagy, showy, melodramatic, overacted, overdone, overripe, histrionic, actorly, affected, mannered, artificial, stilted, unreal, forced;

informal hammy, ham, campy.

▷antonyms natural, unaffected.

theatrical Oxford Dictionary of English