African American

Other spellings

• African-American

Pronunciation

• IPA ^(key): /ˈæf.rɪ.kən əˈmɛrɪkən/

Expression

Expression African American

Some famous African Americans

1. An African American is an American person with African or Black ancestry.

   Barack Obama was the first African American President of the United States.

Synonyms

• black
• person of color
• (old, no longer used) Afro-American
• (old, no longer used) colored
• (very offensive) darky
• (old, no longer used) Negro
• (very offensive) nigger

Related words

• African
• American

Usage notes

• African American is a somewhat formal phrase, and often seen as a politically correct way to say "black person".
• Other than "black person" and "person of color", most other synonyms are no longer used, and are likely to be considered offensive.