person
person — noun
1. one human being, thought of as a single individual rather than a thing, animal,
one human being, thought of as a single individual rather than a thing, animal, or group.
Only one person was waiting outside the clinic at dawn.
one person for a single human being
The police asked each person on the bus for a ticket.
each person in a group
At the beach, every person wore a red wristband for safety.
A tall person in a green coat knocked on our door.
One injured person lay near the broken bicycle after the crash.
- one person
- each person
- injured person
- missing person
- human being
slightly more explicit, especially when contrasting humans with animals or machines
- individual
more formal and common in official or written contexts
- someone
used when the person is not named or not known
- somebody
like 'someone', but a little more conversational
Grammar Patterns
one person
each person
person + in/on/at phrase
Usage Note
Usually countable. In everyday English, the normal plural is 'people'; 'persons' is mainly used in formal notices or legal writing.
Common Mistakes
2. used with another word or description to say what someone is like, what they enj
used with another word or description to say what someone is like, what they enjoy, or what kind of work they do.
Nina is a quiet person, but she laughs loudly at home.
adjective + person for character
Marco is not a morning person and never speaks before coffee.
morning person for daily habit
Aisha is a people person, so customers remember her warm smile.
people person for social character
Jill is a business person who flies to Taipei every month.
business person for area of work
Evan is a cat person and keeps rescue photos on his phone.
- quiet person
- morning person
- people person
- business person
- cat person
Grammar Patterns
adjective + person
a/an + [noun] person
be + a/an + [type] person
Usage Note
Often appears after an adjective or as part of a fixed type label such as 'morning person' or 'business person'. Distinguish from sense 1: here the important idea is the kind of person, not simply the fact that the person is human.
Common Mistakes
3. used to say that someone is physically present and handles something directly, r
used to say that someone is physically present and handles something directly, rather than doing it online, by phone, or through another person.
Lena handed in the form in person at city hall.
in person after an action verb
The doctor wants to see Marcus in person before changing the medicine.
see somebody in person
We met the singer in person after the school concert.
Parents must sign the papers in person on the first day.
sign in person for direct attendance
Because the website failed, Rosa booked the room in person.
- apply in person
- see someone in person
- sign in person
- appear in person
- personally
close in meaning, especially when you do something yourself
- face to face
stresses direct meeting between people
- yourself
used to stress that nobody else does it for you
Grammar Patterns
do something in person
see somebody in person
appear in person
Usage Note
Almost always appears as the phrase 'in person' and often contrasts with 'online', 'by phone', or 'by email'. Distinguish from sense 1: this is an adverbial expression, not a countable noun meaning 'human being'.
Common Mistakes
4. in grammar, one of the forms that show whether a word refers to the speaker, the
in grammar, one of the forms that show whether a word refers to the speaker, the person being addressed, or somebody or something else.
On the whiteboard, Ms. Lin wrote "I" under first person.
first person in grammar explanation
The guide says travel blogs often use the second person to sound friendly.
second person for direct address
Children learn that "they" belongs to the third person plural.
For the school play, Mira changed the story from first person to third.
change from first person to third
- first person
- second person
- third person
- third-person plural
- grammatical person
the full technical term used in grammar books
Grammar Patterns
first person
second person
third person
Usage Note
Most often appears in the fixed labels 'first person', 'second person', and 'third person'. Common in grammar lessons and when discussing point of view in writing.
Common Mistakes
about/on your person
idiomCarrying something with you, usually in a pocket or bag.
The detective found a hidden key on his person.
Do you have any identification about your person?
To treat everyone equally, regardless of their status or importance.
The law is no respecter of persons; it applies to all.
Nature is no respecter of age; storms affect everyone.
in person
idiomDoing something yourself by being physically present, not through others or remotely.
You need to collect the documents in person.
Maya met the author in person at the book fair.
In the form or represented by a particular person.
The company found a new leader in the person of Sara.
Help arrived in the person of a kind neighbor.
person of interest
idiomA person the police think may be involved in a crime but has not been arrested.
The police named a local man as a person of interest.
Detectives interviewed a person of interest in the robbery.
person — suffix
1. added to a noun to make a word for someone with that job or duty, especially whe
added to a noun to make a word for someone with that job or duty, especially when you want a gender-neutral title instead of one ending in '-man' or '-woman'.
The company hired a new salesperson for its Kaohsiung office.
[noun]person as a job title
During the storm, the police spokesperson spoke outside the station.
spokesperson for an official role
Our class chose Mia as chairperson for the spring festival meeting.
chairperson as a neutral title
The website suggests using "businessperson" in job ads.
businessperson in gender-neutral language
- salesperson
- spokesperson
- chairperson
- businessperson
Grammar Patterns
[noun]person
[noun]person + for + place/task
Usage Note
This ending attaches to another noun and forms a single role word such as 'salesperson' or 'chairperson'. Distinguish from noun sense 2: suffix sense 1 is a word-building ending inside a title, not the separate noun 'person' after a describing word.
Common Mistakes
Word family
- personaladjectiveB1
- personallyadverbB1
- personalitynounB1
- personableadjectiveC1
- impersonaladjectiveC1
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
For noun sense 1, 'person' is the normal everyday word for one human being. 'Human being' is more explicit and often appears when people are contrasted with animals, robots, or other living things. 'Individual' is more formal and is common in rules, reports, and official language. 'Someone' and 'somebody' are less exact: they usually mean a person whose name or identity is not important, and they sound more natural in conversation than 'individual'. Compare: 'One person was waiting outside the shop.' 'Somebody was waiting outside the shop.' 'The report identified one individual at the scene.'
Etymology
English 'person' came through Old French from Latin 'persona'. In Latin, 'persona' first meant a theatrical mask or stage role, and later it was used for a human individual. That later meaning passed into English and became the main modern sense.