person
UK: ˈpɜː.sən | US: ˈpɜːr.sən
n. a human being regarded as an individual
n. (law) a legal entity with rights and duties
n. (grammar) a category of pronouns/verbs (e.g., first/second/third person)
person = per<through> + son<sound>
- per (Latin per, "through") → Suggests projection or outward expression.
- son (Latin sonus, "sound") → Refers to voice or identity expressed audibly.
Etymology Origin:
Derived from Latin persona, originally meaning "theater mask" (literally "that through which sound passes"). Ancient actors used masks to project voices (per-sonare). Over time, it evolved to signify the "role" a mask represented, then the individual behind it. The grammatical sense arose from the idea of "roles" in language (e.g., speaker/listener).
Every person has the right to education.
The corporation was treated as a legal person.
In "I am here," I is the first-person pronoun.
She’s a very private person.
The play’s main person undergoes a dramatic transformation.