spokesperson

UK/ˈspəʊkspɜːɹsən/US/ˈspoʊksˌpɝsən/

nounB2+Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #8,694 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: spokespersons, spokespeople

A spokesperson is somebody appointed to speak for a group. A spokesperson said.

It replaced spokesman and spokeswoman where the sex is unknown or irrelevant. A spokesperson gives the agreed line rather than an opinion, which is why they are quoted and rarely named.

Definitions of spokesperson

1nounspokespersonSomebody appointed to speak for a group.B2+
“A spokesperson for the trust confirmed the closure that afternoon.”

spokesperson is a person.

Where it comes from

Spoke plus an -s- plus person, built on the older spokesman.

From spoke + -s- + person.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

spokesperson in the wild

Party spokespersons can also be assisted in their duties by deputy or assistant spokespersons in the same portfolio.
Party spokesperson
Historically, the State Department spokesperson also served as the assistant secretary of state for public affairs.
Spokesperson for the United States Department of State
Since that time, the assistant secretary and the spokesperson have been two separate positions.
Spokesperson for the United States Department of State
The current spokespersons are Mao Ning, Lin Jian and Guo Jiakun.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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