alien

Definition of alien

Alternative forms

• alyaunte (15th-16th centuries)

Etymology

From Latin aliēnus, "belonging to someone else", then "exotic, foreign", from alius, "other". Cognate with Ancient Greek αλλος (allos), "another, different" and Old English elles, "else".

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈeɪ.li.ən/, SAMPA: /"eI.lI.@n/
• Audio (US) ^[?]

Noun

alien (plural aliens)

1. A person, animal, plant or other thing which is from outside the family, group, organization, or territory under consideration.
2. A foreigner residing in a country.
3. Any life form of extraterrestrial origin.

Related terms

• alienage
• space alien

Adjective

alien (comparative more alien, superlative most alien)

1. Pertaining to an alien.
2. Very unfamiliar, strange, or removed.

Verb

to alien (third-person singular simple present aliens, present participle aliening, simple past and past participle aliened)

1. To estrange; to alienate.

Further reading

In law, an alien is a person in a country who is not a citizen of that country.[1]

Categorization

Types of "alien" persons are:

• An alien who is legally permitted to remain in a country which is foreign to him or her. On specified terms, this kind of alien may be called a legal alien of that country. This is a very broad category which includes tourists, guest workers, green card permanent residents and student visa aliens.
• An alien who has temporary or permanent residence in a country (which is foreign to him/her) may be called a resident alien of that country. This is a subset of the aforementioned legal alien category.
• An alien who is visiting a country (which is foreign to him/her) may be called a nonresident alien of that country. This is a subset of the aforementioned legal alien category.
• An alien who is present in a country (which is foreign to him/her) unlawfully or without the country's authorization may be called an illegal alien of that country.[2] In the United States, such an alien may euphemistically call themself an "undocumented person".
• An enemy alien is an alien who is designated as an enemy; compare to enemy combatant.