first person

American  

[furst pur-suhn] / ˈfɜrst ˈpɜr sən /

noun

1. the grammatical person used by a speaker in statements referring to the speaker's own self first person singular or to a group including the speaker first person plural.

2. a pronoun or verb form in the first person, as I or am in English, or a set of such forms.

3. a literary style in which the narrative is told from the perspective of a narrator speaking directly.

   The story is written in the first person.

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first person British  

noun

1. a grammatical category of pronouns and verbs used by the speaker to refer to or talk about himself or herself, either alone ( first person singular ) or together with others ( first person plural )

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Etymology

Origin of first person

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

First-person accounts of Mr. Gifford enduring and sometimes enjoying high temperatures enrich his narrative.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026

First-person accounts from locals describe seeing an intense flash of light in the early morning of July 16.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 26, 2023

First-person storytelling is interspersed with third-person “fictionalizing” of one’s narrative.

From Washington Post • Apr. 2, 2023

First-person shooters such as Overwatch, mobile games such as Clash Royale, and multiplayer online battle arenas such as League of Legends are regularly tweaked and patched over the internet in search of this perfect balance.

From Slate • Oct. 14, 2016

First-person account given by the only scientist to walk on the Moon.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016