portrayal vs characterization

portrayal and characterization both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
portrayal	Yes	No	No	No
characterization	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, portrayal and characterization are synonyms defined as:

portrayal and characterization: acting the part of a character on stage; dramatically representing the character by speech and action and gesture

Other synonyms of portrayal include enactment, personation.

As nouns, characterization is a hypernym of portrayal; that is, characterization is a word with a broader meaning than portrayal:

Other hypernyms of portrayal include characterisation, delineation, depiction, picture, word-painting, word picture.

portrayal (noun)	characterization (noun)
representation by drawing or painting etc	acting the part of a character on stage; dramatically representing the character by speech and action and gesture
acting the part of a character on stage; dramatically representing the character by speech and action and gesture	a graphic or vivid verbal description
any likeness of a person, in any medium	the act of describing distinctive characteristics or essential features
a representation by picture or portraiture
a word picture of a person's appearance and character