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• African American
  African American

  noun

  an American with Black African ancestry.
• African-American
  African-American

  noun

  an American of African descent

African American

American  

[af-ri-kuhn uh-mer-i-kuhn] / ˈæf rɪ kən əˈmɛr ɪ kən /

Sometimes Aframerican

noun

1. an American with Black African ancestry.

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adjective

1. of or relating to African Americans.

2. African-American, occurring between the United States and Africa.

   Several international charities are promoting African-American cooperation in expanding access to safe drinking water.

African-American British  

noun

1. an American of African descent

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adjective

1. of or relating to Americans of African descent

Usage

During the 1980s, many Americans sought to display pride in their immigrant origins. Linguistically, this brought about a brief period of short-form hyphenated designations, like Italo-Americans and Greco-Americans. The Black community also embraced the existing term Afro-American, a label that emphasized geographical or ethnic heritage over skin color. The related label, African American, also saw an increase in use among activists in the 1970s and 1980s. African American was even more widely adopted in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s after high-profile Black leaders advocated for it, arguing, as Jesse Jackson did, that the term brought “proper historical context” and had “cultural integrity.” See Black ¹.

This is the currently preferred term in the US for people of African ancestry

Etymology

Origin of African American

An Americanism dating back to 1780–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

African American African-American

It’s a stark contrast to the National Museum of African American History & Culture, which opened in 2016 under the direction of Bunch and, notably, has a clear chronological design.

From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026

Rebecca completed her bachelor’s degree at Harvard College, where she studied philosophy and African American studies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

His career accomplishments include founding the National Museum of African American History and Culture and authoring numerous books, including one on the NMAAHC's creation.

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

In Tuskegee, a rural Alabama city with less than 9,000 people, over 80% of them African American, nearly one in three people live in poverty.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

This sent a clear message to lawmakers and future politicians and reestablished a feeling that seemed to have been lost when Harold Washington died: The African American vote mattered.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Mr. Rogers thinks some of these voters are ripe for defection: “The African-American community of Michigan has felt a little bit abandoned” by the Democratic Party.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

"His background is everything - European, African-American, Hispanic and indigenous as well," he says.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

“We’re doing very well with the Black jobs, African-American jobs,” he said.

From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026

“House” was first heard in a short-lived 1942 revue titled “Let Freedom Sing” but was then performed by an African-American vocal group, the Delta Rhythm Boys.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

I was shooting and sulking when this African-American girl I’d never seen before walked over.

From "The Million Dollar Shot" by Dan Gutman