Ventriloquists

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A skilled entertainer who produces sound to make it seem as though a puppet or dummy is speaking while their own lips remain still
2. An artist who manipulates a voice to create the illusion that it originates from a puppet or inanimate object, all while keeping their mouth closed
3. Individuals who expertly create the effect of a puppet speaking by controlling their voice while keeping their lips motionless

Etymology: The plural "ventriloquists" is the form of "ventriloquist," a performer who makes their voice seem to come from somewhere other than their own mouth, usually from a puppet or dummy. The root of the word is Latin "venter," meaning belly, paired with "loqui," meaning to speak. The word is a Latin-based compound that was built from those two parts, so a ventriloquist is literally a "belly speaker," a name that reflects an old and mistaken belief that the voice came from the stomach. The noun "ventriloquist" is formed from "ventriloquy," the name for the art itself, plus the suffix "-ist," which marks a person who practises or performs something. That suffix passed into English through Middle English, having come originally from Greek forms that ended in "-istēs," carried through Latin and Old French before settling into English.

Synonyms: dummy operator, voice thrower