African

American  

[af-ri-kuhn] / ˈæf rɪ kən /

adjective

1. of or from Africa; belonging to the Black peoples of Africa.

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noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Africa.

2. (loosely) a Black person or other person of African ancestry.

African British  

/ ˈæfrɪkən /

adjective

1. denoting or relating to Africa or any of its peoples, languages, nations, etc

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noun

1. a native, inhabitant, or citizen of any of the countries of Africa

2. a member or descendant of any of the peoples of Africa, esp a Black person

Other Word Forms

• Africanness noun
• inter-African adjective
• non-African adjective
• proAfrican adjective
• pseudo-African adjective
• trans-African adjective

Etymology

Origin of African

First recorded before 1000 for noun, 1540–60 for adjective; Middle English noun Affrican, Aufrican “an inhabitant of North Africa or the Roman province of Africa (approximately modern Tunisia),” Old English noun Africanas “Africans” (accusative plural), from Late Latin Āfricānus “an inhabitant of Africa,” from Latin adjective Āfricānus “pertaining to Africa, African,” from Āfrica (short for terra Āfrica “African land”) “the continent of Africa, the Roman province of Africa,” a derivative of Āfrī, plural of adjective and noun Āfer ( Āfra, Āfrum ) “pertaining to Africa, African,” as a noun “an inhabitant of North Africa”; further etymology uncertain; possibly akin to Phoenician ʾafar “dust”; possibly the name of a local Libyan tribe ancestral to the Berbers

Compare meaning

How does african compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• African vs. Indian elephant

Example Sentences

The company, which has around 2,200 employees, is looking in particular at Europe, but is also weighing a move into Asian and African markets.

From Barron's

Soskin grew up in a Cajun-Creole African American family that settled in Oakland after a historic flood devastated their home in New Orleans in 1927, according to her Park Service biography.

From Los Angeles Times

South Africans will now have to wait until some point next year to read the findings and recommendations from both inquiries.

From BBC

The following year, Ngũgĩ’s first novel, “Weep Not, Child,” was published, the first major novel in English by an East African writer.

From The Wall Street Journal

Russian private military contractors in the Central African Republic told AFP they took any threats to the upcoming elections in the volatile country "extremely seriously" and were ready to "repel any provocations".

From Barron's