# negro

/ˈniɡɹoʊ/ (US) · /nˈiːɡɹəʊ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/negro
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. person of African descent

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Formal

a word for a person with black skin that was common in the past but is now very offensive.

For teachers: a term for a person of black African ancestry, formerly standard in English but now considered derogatory and offensive.

- The old book used the word negro to describe the main character.
- Historians must often engage with primary sources from the nineteenth century that use the term negro as a standard descriptor for African Americans.

Usage: Capitalized in some historical contexts; universally avoided in contemporary speech.

Teaching tip: This term is highly offensive in modern English. Students should recognize it in historical texts but never use it in their own writing or speech.

### 2. relating to black ethnicity

adjective · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Formal

describing things or people related to black African culture in an old-fashioned way.

For teachers: relating to or characteristic of people of black African descent; now largely restricted to historical proper names or academic discussions of past eras.

- He studied the history of the Negro Leagues in American baseball.
- The term appears in the names of historical organizations, such as the United Negro College Fund, which retains its original title for institutional continuity.

Usage: Usually capitalized when part of a proper noun or historical title.

Teaching tip: While the word is offensive as a general adjective, it remains in the names of some long-standing American institutions.

## Examples

- The old history book used the word Negro to describe the explorers.
- Many civil rights leaders in the mid-20th century used the term Negro in their speeches before it fell out of common usage.
- Scholars studying the Jim Crow era must navigate primary sources where the term Negro appears as the standard sociological classification of the time.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.