noun · academic
personhood
UK/ˈpɜː.sən.hʊd/US/ˈpɝː.sən.hʊd/PER·son·hood
the status of being a person, often used about legal or moral recognition of someone as a human being
Examples
“Debates about abortion often revolve around whether a foetus has personhood.”
“International law may extend personhood to corporations in some contexts.”
“She argued that denying personhood to certain groups leads to human-rights abuses.”
Band 8 sentence
“Contemporary ethical debates increasingly focus on the boundaries of personhood and who is entitled to fundamental rights.”
Collocations
- grant personhood to
- deny personhood
- legal personhood
Word family
Common mistakes
personality→personhood
being a person→personhood
Say it for a higher band
5being a person→6legal status as a person→7+personhood
Synonyms
humanity
Easily confused
personality
“The court considered whether the foetus could ever have personhood.”
Related words
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In -hood
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