# Oedipus Rex: every role by lines, words, and stage time

> Sophocles, translated by Francis Storr. 9 speaking roles, 12,041 words, about 86 minutes of speech.

- URL: https://www.offbook.com/plays/oedipus-rex
- Last updated: 2026-10-08

**Oedipus** has the most to say in Oedipus Rex: about 688 lines and 5,430 words, 45.1% of the play. Sophocles’ tragedy follows the king of Thebes as he hunts for the killer of the former king, Laius. Oedipus carries the play almost alone, with about 45% of the words, nearly three times the Chorus. Creon and Jocasta each hold under a tenth.

- Speaking roles: 9
- Scenes: Continuous
- Words: 12,041
- Speech time: 86 min

## Every role, largest first

| Role | Lines | Words | Share | Minutes | Scenes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oedipus | 688 | 5,430 | 45.1% | 38.8 | 1 |
| Chorus | 278 | 2,009 | 16.7% | 14.4 | 1 |
| Creon | 143 | 1,123 | 9.3% | 8.0 | 1 |
| Jocasta | 130 | 1,022 | 8.5% | 7.3 | 1 |
| Teiresias | 83 | 705 | 5.9% | 5.0 | 1 |
| Second Messenger | 77 | 616 | 5.1% | 4.4 | 1 |
| Messenger | 57 | 452 | 3.8% | 3.2 | 1 |
| Priest | 56 | 439 | 3.6% | 3.1 | 1 |
| Herdsman | 32 | 245 | 2% | 1.8 | 1 |

## The longest speeches

| Speech | Words | Lines |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Oedipus: “And thou shalt not be frustrate of thy wish,” | 542 | 68 |
| Oedipus: “Ye pray; ’tis well, but would ye hear my words” | 506 | 63 |
| Second Messenger: “By her own hand. And all the horror of it,” | 442 | 55 |
| Oedipus: “What’s done was well done. Thou canst never shake” | 410 | 50 |
| Priest: “Yea, Oedipus, my sovereign lord and king,” | 375 | 48 |
| Chorus: “Sweet-voiced daughter of Zeus from thy gold-paved Pythian shrine” | 367 | 58 |
| Creon: “Not so, if thou wouldst reason with thyself,” | 294 | 36 |
| Oedipus: “God speed thee! and as meed for bringing them” | 292 | 36 |
| Chorus: “Who is he by voice immortal named from Pythia’s rocky cell,” | 280 | 32 |
| Oedipus: “Aye, and on thee in all humility” | 259 | 31 |

## Questions actors ask

### Who has the most lines in Oedipus Rex?

Oedipus, with about 688 lines and 5,430 words, 45.1% of everything spoken in the play. Chorus is next, with about 278 lines (16.7%).

### How long is Oedipus Rex?

The full text has 12,041 spoken words, about 86 minutes at 140 words a minute before pauses, scene changes, and cuts. Most productions cut the text, so running times vary.

### How many speaking roles are in Oedipus Rex?

9 named roles speak in this edition, in one continuous text with no scene breaks. 0 of them have less than 2% of the words, which is why small parts are often doubled.

## How we count

Counts are computed from the full text of the [Standard Ebooks edition](https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/sophocles/oedipus-rex/francis-storr) (public domain; retrieved 2026-10-08). Words are every spoken word, with stage directions removed. Lines are verse lines as printed, plus prose at 10 words a line, because prose has no fixed line breaks; editions differ, so other sources give slightly different line counts. Time is words at 140 words a minute, before pauses and stage business. A role is counted in a scene when it speaks there. To count a script that is not in the library, paste it into the [script line counter](https://www.offbook.com/tools/script-line-counter).