emote

(ĭ-mōt')
intr.v., e·mot·ed, e·mot·ing, e·motes.
To express emotion, especially in an excessive or theatrical manner: "The more she emotes, the less he listens, and the less he listens, the more strident and emotive she becomes" (Maggie Scarf).

[Back-formation from EMOTION.]

emoter e·mot'er n.

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is a back-formation meaning 'to express emotion'. It is first recorded in America in 1917, and although it was once largely restricted to the language of ballet and theatre critics and to photography it has expanded more recently into general usage:

The female sitter had to emote in some way, either by dressing up or by gazing with drooping head into a bowl of flowers—Amateur Photographer, 1970

How are you going to get up and emote in front of an audience?—L. S. Schwartz, 1989

She settles in her seat, accepts coffee, flirts with the ticket-collector, cuts up rough about the price of a first-class upgrade, gets distraught at the sight of someone narrowly missing their train, and generally emotes all over the place—Independent, 2002.

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verb

To make an emotional display: emotionalize, gush. See feelings.

IN BRIEF: To give expression to.

During the play, the actor's job was to emote expressively and humorously to every situation.

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See words rhyming with "emote."