who
noun
Simple meaning
A person under discussion.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
hooIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈhu
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A person under discussion; a question of which person.
A United Nations agency to coordinate international health activities and to help governments improve health services
An agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health
fandom slang
The television show Doctor Who.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- General English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A person under discussion; a question of which person.
Used this way, who is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use who
- “I don't like what you did, but who am I to criticize you? I've done worse.”pronoun
- “It was a nice man who helped us.”pronoun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Commonly Confused With
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Related Learning
Guides that use this word in context.
Quick Lessons
Who vs. Whom: A Simple Test That Works
Learn when to use who and when to use whom with a quick substitution test, plus examples and common mistakes.
Vocabulary
What Do You Call Someone Who Loves Being Alone?
Looking for a word for someone who loves being alone? Explore introvert, loner, homebody, recluse, solitary, and other words, and learn the important differences between them.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.