automaton vs actor

automaton and actor both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
automaton	Yes	No	No	No
actor	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, actor is a hypernym of automaton; that is, actor is a word with a broader meaning than automaton:

Other hypernyms of automaton include doer, worker.

automaton (noun)	actor (noun)
a mechanism that can move automatically	a theatrical performer
a machine that operates on its own without the need for human control	a person who acts and gets things done
someone who acts or responds in a mechanical or apathetic way