# Othello: every role by lines, words, and stage time

> William Shakespeare. 26 speaking roles, 25,835 words, about 185 minutes of speech.

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

**Iago** has the most to say in Othello: about 1,081 lines and 8,410 words, 32.6% of the play. Othello follows a Venetian general who is led by his ensign Iago to believe that his wife Desdemona is unfaithful. Iago, not Othello, is the largest part, with about a third of the words, and he speaks in 13 of 15 sections. Othello adds about a quarter more, so the two men carry more than half of the play between them.

- Speaking roles: 26
- Scenes: 15
- Words: 25,835
- Speech time: 185 min

## Every role, largest first

| Role | Lines | Words | Share | Minutes | Scenes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Iago](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/iago) | 1,081 | 8,410 | 32.6% | 60.1 | 13 |
| [Othello](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/othello) | 883 | 6,233 | 24.1% | 44.5 | 12 |
| [Desdemona](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/desdemona) | 386 | 2,752 | 10.7% | 19.7 | 9 |
| [Cassio](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/cassio) | 273 | 1,953 | 7.6% | 14.0 | 9 |
| Emilia | 245 | 1,806 | 7% | 12.9 | 8 |
| Brabantio | 139 | 1,041 | 4% | 7.4 | 3 |
| Roderigo | 118 | 860 | 3.3% | 6.1 | 7 |
| Lodovico | 76 | 528 | 2% | 3.8 | 4 |
| Duke | 70 | 476 | 1.8% | 3.4 | 1 |
| Montano | 60 | 414 | 1.6% | 3.0 | 3 |
| Bianca | 35 | 266 | 1% | 1.9 | 3 |
| Clown | 28 | 225 | 0.9% | 1.6 | 2 |
| First Senator | 26 | 180 | 0.7% | 1.3 | 1 |
| Gratiano | 27 | 160 | 0.6% | 1.1 | 2 |
| Third Gentleman | 17 | 113 | 0.4% | 0.8 | 1 |
| Herald | 11 | 101 | 0.4% | 0.7 | 1 |
| Second Gentleman | 12 | 77 | 0.3% | 0.6 | 1 |
| Messenger | 9 | 62 | 0.2% | 0.4 | 1 |
| Second Senator | 5 | 38 | 0.1% | 0.3 | 1 |
| First Officer | 5 | 28 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 2 |
| Sailor | 4 | 24 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| First Musician | 5 | 23 | 0.1% | 0.2 | 1 |
| First Gentleman | 3 | 19 | 0.1% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Fourth Gentleman | 2 | 19 | 0.1% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Second Gentlemen | 2 | 11 | 0% | 0.1 | 1 |
| Gentlemen | 1 | 5 | 0% | 0.0 | 1 |

## Who speaks in which scene

Words each role speaks in each scene (scene: words). Scenes: 1.1 = Act 1, Scene 1; 1.2 = Act 1, Scene 2; 1.3 = Act 1, Scene 3; 2.1 = Act 2, Scene 1; 2.2 = Act 2, Scene 2; 2.3 = Act 2, Scene 3; 3.1 = Act 3, Scene 1; 3.2 = Act 3, Scene 2; 3.3 = Act 3, Scene 3; 3.4 = Act 3, Scene 4; 4.1 = Act 4, Scene 1; 4.2 = Act 4, Scene 2; 4.3 = Act 4, Scene 3; 5.1 = Act 5, Scene 1; 5.2 = Act 5, Scene 2.

- **Iago**: 1.1 (825), 1.2 (196), 1.3 (762), 2.1 (1,257), 2.3 (1,638), 3.1 (34), 3.2 (6), 3.3 (1,601), 3.4 (73), 4.1 (929), 4.2 (434), 5.1 (578), 5.2 (77)
- **Othello**: 1.2 (262), 1.3 (869), 2.1 (219), 2.3 (412), 3.2 (35), 3.3 (1,439), 3.4 (314), 4.1 (675), 4.2 (493), 4.3 (35), 5.1 (64), 5.2 (1,416)
- **Desdemona**: 1.3 (217), 2.1 (204), 2.3 (3), 3.3 (536), 3.4 (566), 4.1 (75), 4.2 (456), 4.3 (422), 5.2 (273)
- **Cassio**: 1.2 (104), 2.1 (362), 2.3 (599), 3.1 (148), 3.3 (76), 3.4 (275), 4.1 (192), 5.1 (99), 5.2 (98)
- **Emilia**: 2.1 (18), 3.1 (103), 3.3 (205), 3.4 (115), 4.2 (329), 4.3 (378), 5.1 (25), 5.2 (633)
- **Brabantio**: 1.1 (337), 1.2 (234), 1.3 (470)
- **Roderigo**: 1.1 (316), 1.2 (5), 1.3 (99), 2.1 (41), 2.3 (66), 4.2 (260), 5.1 (73)
- **Lodovico**: 4.1 (173), 4.3 (17), 5.1 (47), 5.2 (291)

## The longest speeches

| Speech | Scene | Words | Lines |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Othello: “Her father loved me; oft invited me;” | Act 1, Scene 3 | 344 | 43 |
| Iago: “It is merely a lust of the blood and a permission of the will. Come, be a man. Drown thyself! drown cats and blind puppies. I have professed me thy friend and I confess me knit to thy deserving with cables of perdurable toughness; I could never better stead thee than now. Put money in thy purse; follow thou the wars; defeat thy favour with an usurped beard; I say, put money in thy purse. It cannot be that Desdemona should long continue her love to the Moor—put money in thy purse—nor he his to her: it was a violent commencement, and thou shalt see an answerable sequestration:—put but money in thy purse. These Moors are changeable in their wills: fill thy purse with money:—the food that to him now is as luscious as locusts, shall be to him shortly as bitter as coloquintida. She must change for youth: when she is sated with his body, she will find the error of her choice: she must have change, she must: therefore put money in thy purse. If thou wilt needs damn thyself, do it a more delicate way than drowning. Make all the money thou canst: if sanctimony and a frail vow betwixt an erring barbarian and a supersubtle Venetian not too hard for my wits and all the tribe of hell, thou shalt enjoy her; therefore make money. A pox of drowning thyself! it is clean out of the way: seek thou rather to be hanged in compassing thy joy than to be drowned and go without her.” | Act 1, Scene 3 | 263 | 27 |
| Iago: “Lay thy finger thus, and let thy soul be instructed. Mark me with what violence she first loved the Moor, but for bragging and telling her fantastical lies: and will she love him still for prating? let not thy discreet heart think it. Her eye must be fed; and what delight shall she have to look on the devil? When the blood is made dull with the act of sport, there should be, again to inflame it and to give satiety a fresh appetite, loveliness in favour, sympathy in years, manners and beauties; all which the Moor is defective in: now, for want of these required conveniences, her delicate tenderness will find itself abused, begin to heave the gorge, disrelish and abhor the Moor; very nature will instruct her in it and compel her to some second choice. Now, sir, this granted—as it is a most pregnant and unforced position—who stands so eminent in the degree of this fortune as Cassio does? a knave very voluble; no further conscionable than in putting on the mere form of civil and humane seeming, for the better compassing of his salt and most hidden loose affection? why, none; why, none: a slipper and subtle knave, a finder of occasions, that has an eye can stamp and counterfeit advantages, though true advantage never present itself; a devilish knave. Besides, the knave is handsome, young, and hath all those requisites in him that folly and green minds look after: a pestilent complete knave; and the woman hath found him already.” | Act 2, Scene 1 | 257 | 26 |
| Iago: “That Cassio loves her, I do well believe it;” | Act 2, Scene 1 | 220 | 27 |
| Iago: “And what’s he then that says I play the villain?” | Act 2, Scene 3 | 219 | 28 |
| Iago: “Touch me not so near:” | Act 2, Scene 3 | 210 | 27 |
| Iago: “O, sir, content you;” | Act 1, Scene 1 | 204 | 26 |
| Iago: “Despise me, if I do not. Three great ones of the city,” | Act 1, Scene 1 | 194 | 26 |
| Othello: “It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul—” | Act 5, Scene 2 | 191 | 22 |
| Iago: “Thus do I ever make my fool my purse:” | Act 1, Scene 3 | 186 | 22 |

## Small roles that can be doubled

These pairs of small roles never speak in the same scene, so one actor could play both. Check entrances and silent appearances in your script before you cast it this way.

- Brabantio and Lodovico
- Brabantio and Montano
- Brabantio and Bianca
- Brabantio and Clown
- Brabantio and Gratiano
- Brabantio and Third Gentleman
- Brabantio and Herald
- Brabantio and Second Gentleman
- Brabantio and First Musician
- Brabantio and First Gentleman
- Brabantio and Fourth Gentleman
- Brabantio and Second Gentlemen

## Roles and monologues in depth

- [How many lines does Othello have?](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/othello)
- [How many lines does Iago have?](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/iago)
- [How many lines does Desdemona have?](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/desdemona)
- [How many lines does Cassio have?](https://www.offbook.com/plays/othello/cassio)

## Questions actors ask

### Who has the most lines in Othello?

Iago, with about 1,081 lines and 8,410 words, 32.6% of everything spoken in the play. Othello is next, with about 883 lines (24.1%).

### How long is Othello?

The full text has 25,835 spoken words, about 185 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 Othello?

26 named roles speak in this edition, across 15 scenes. 18 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/william-shakespeare/othello) (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).