person
♦♦♦ per|son /p'ɜːrsən/ (people persons)
The usual word for `more than one person' is people. The form persons is used as the plural in formal or legal language.
1 [N-COUNT]
A person is a man, woman, or child.
At least one person died and several others were injured...
Everyone knows he's the only person who can do the job...
The amount of sleep we need varies from person to person...
2 [N-PLURAL]
Persons is used as the plural of person in formal, legal, and technical writing.
...removal of the right of accused persons to remain silent...
3 [N-COUNT]
If you talk about someone as a person, you are considering them from the point of view of their real nature.
Robin didn't feel good about herself as a person.
4 [N-COUNT] a supp N
If someone says, for example, `I'm an outdoor person' or `I'm not a coffee person', they are saying whether or not they like that particular activity or thing. (mainly SPOKEN)
I am not a country person at all. I prefer the cities.
5 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you do something in person, you do it yourself rather than letting someone else do it for you.
She went to New York to receive the award in person.
6 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you meet, hear, or see someone in person, you are in the same place as them, rather than, for example, speaking to them on the telephone, writing to them, or seeing them on television.
It was the first time she had seen him in person.
7 [N-COUNT] poss N
Your person is your body. (FORMAL)
The suspect had refused to give any details of his identity and had carried no documents on his person.
8 [PHRASE] PHR n
You can use in the person of when mentioning the name of someone you have just referred to in a more general or indirect way. (WRITTEN)
We had a knowledgeable guide in the person of George Adams.
9 [N-COUNT] usu supp N
In grammar, we use the term first person when referring to `I' and `we', second person when referring to `you', and third person when referring to `he', `she', `it', `they', and all other noun groups. Person is also used like this when referring to the verb forms that go with these pronouns and noun groups.
see also first person, second person, busi|ness per|son (business people)
[N-COUNT]
Business people are people who work in business.
...a self-employed business person.dis|placed per|son (displaced persons)
[N-COUNT]
A displaced person is someone who has been forced to leave the place where they live, especially because of a war.first per|son
[N-SING] the N
A statement in the first person is a statement about yourself, or about yourself and someone else. The subject of a statement like this is `I' or `we'.
He tells the story in the first person...lay per|son (lay personsor lay people)
also layperson
[N-COUNT]
A lay person is a person who is not trained, qualified, or experienced in a particular subject or activity.
≠ expertmiss|ing per|son (missing persons)
[N-COUNT]
A missing person has suddenly left their home without telling their family where they are going, and it is not known whether they are alive or dead.sec|ond per|son
[N-SING] the N
A statement in the second person is a statement about the person or people you are talking to. The subject of a statement like this is `you'.third per|son
[N-SING] the N
In grammar, a statement in the third person is a statement about another person or thing, and not directly about yourself or about the person you are talking to. The subject of a statement like this is `he', `she', `it', or a name or noun.
The usual word for `more than one person' is people. The form persons is used as the plural in formal or legal language.
1 [N-COUNT]
A person is a man, woman, or child.
At least one person died and several others were injured...
Everyone knows he's the only person who can do the job...
The amount of sleep we need varies from person to person...
2 [N-PLURAL]
Persons is used as the plural of person in formal, legal, and technical writing.
...removal of the right of accused persons to remain silent...
3 [N-COUNT]
If you talk about someone as a person, you are considering them from the point of view of their real nature.
Robin didn't feel good about herself as a person.
4 [N-COUNT] a supp N
If someone says, for example, `I'm an outdoor person' or `I'm not a coffee person', they are saying whether or not they like that particular activity or thing. (mainly SPOKEN)
I am not a country person at all. I prefer the cities.
5 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you do something in person, you do it yourself rather than letting someone else do it for you.
She went to New York to receive the award in person.
6 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you meet, hear, or see someone in person, you are in the same place as them, rather than, for example, speaking to them on the telephone, writing to them, or seeing them on television.
It was the first time she had seen him in person.
7 [N-COUNT] poss N
Your person is your body. (FORMAL)
The suspect had refused to give any details of his identity and had carried no documents on his person.
8 [PHRASE] PHR n
You can use in the person of when mentioning the name of someone you have just referred to in a more general or indirect way. (WRITTEN)
We had a knowledgeable guide in the person of George Adams.
9 [N-COUNT] usu supp N
In grammar, we use the term first person when referring to `I' and `we', second person when referring to `you', and third person when referring to `he', `she', `it', `they', and all other noun groups. Person is also used like this when referring to the verb forms that go with these pronouns and noun groups.
see also first person, second person, busi|ness per|son (business people)
[N-COUNT]
Business people are people who work in business.
...a self-employed business person.dis|placed per|son (displaced persons)
[N-COUNT]
A displaced person is someone who has been forced to leave the place where they live, especially because of a war.first per|son
[N-SING] the N
A statement in the first person is a statement about yourself, or about yourself and someone else. The subject of a statement like this is `I' or `we'.
He tells the story in the first person...lay per|son (lay personsor lay people)
also layperson
[N-COUNT]
A lay person is a person who is not trained, qualified, or experienced in a particular subject or activity.
≠ expertmiss|ing per|son (missing persons)
[N-COUNT]
A missing person has suddenly left their home without telling their family where they are going, and it is not known whether they are alive or dead.sec|ond per|son
[N-SING] the N
A statement in the second person is a statement about the person or people you are talking to. The subject of a statement like this is `you'.third per|son
[N-SING] the N
In grammar, a statement in the third person is a statement about another person or thing, and not directly about yourself or about the person you are talking to. The subject of a statement like this is `he', `she', `it', or a name or noun.