Bracegirdle studied acting with Thomas Betterton, her guardian, and appeared on the stage as early as six years of age. In 1688 her performance in Thomas Shadwell’s The Squire of Alsatia at Drury Lane Theatre, London, brought her notice. Different playwrights, particularly William Congreve and Nicholas Rowe, began writing leading parts for her. Bracegirdle excelled at playing the heroines of Congreve’s artificial comedies, but she also had a feeling for Rowe’s tragic sentiments when she portrayed Selina in Tamerlane and Lavinia in The Fair Penitent. It has been suggested that she was the first female to play the role of Portia from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Her most famous roles included Statira in Nathaniel Lee’s The Rival Queens and Millamant in Congreve’s The Way of the World. In addition, she was an accomplished singer and sang in several stage productions. Bracegirdle retired at the height of her career, about 1707, when she began to be eclipsed by the rising star of Anne Oldfield.
Bracegirdle enjoyed a reputation for virtuous character extraordinary in an actress of the period. It was believed during her life that she was married to Congreve, who left her a legacy. She was buried in Westminster Abbey.