vocabulary - Is "alien" offensive?


I understand that alien is used as a synonym of foreigner, as well as a synonym of extraterrestrial.


I suspect that people from other planets wouldn't mind being called aliens. But is it wrong (offensive or somehow inappropriate) to call a person (from Earth!) visiting an English speaking country an alien?



Answer



The term alien is actually the technical term used by governments to describe someone who is not a citizen (of either the naturalized or natural born varieties). For example, one of the major immigration forms for the US is entitled "Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration"


I would say it is not at all inappropriate, and any offense would really only be attributed to confusion between the two meanings.


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