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layperson
[ ley-pur-suhn ]
noun
- a person who is not a member of the clergy; one of the laity.
- a person who is not a member of a given profession, as law or medicine.
Gender Note
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of layperson1
Example Sentences
He explains why in terms a layperson can understand: “Trains suck up leaves under the wheels and you get black surface on the wheels and if it’s wet it gets really slippery.”
Despite all that, conjectures by laypersons that the illness or death of acquaintances can be traced to the vaccines are legion.
The decision says almost nothing about the procedure that most laypersons think is the alpha and omega of IVF — the implantation of manually fertilized embryos into the uterus.
A layperson might mistake the job that swept her across the ocean as “bodyguard.”
Where babies are harmed because of clinical negligence, the projected payouts can appear very sizable to the layperson.
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More About Layperson
What doeslayperson mean?
Layperson is used in a religious context to refer to a person who is a regular member of a religious congregation and not a member of the clergy—that is, a layperson is someone who is not a religious official like a priest.
The term clergy collectively refers to people who have been ordained or otherwise serve as religious leaders or officials, such as priests, rabbis, and nuns. The plural of layperson is laypeople. In a religious context, laypeople can be collectively referred to as the laity.
The word layman specifically refers to a man, but it is often used regardless of gender. However, layperson is truly gender-neutral.
Layperson is perhaps even more commonly used outside of a religious context to refer to a person who is not a member of a particular profession or who is not an expert in or knowledgeable about a particular field. The phrase Dz’s terms means plain language that the average person can understand, as opposed to technical jargon that can only be understood by experts in the topic or those who are already familiar with it.
When someone asks for an explanation in Dz’s terms, they want it to be as simple and straightforward as possible, so that it can be understood by a Dz—a nonexpert. The phrase layman’s terms means the same thing and is more commonly used.
Example: She has built a career as a science writer by explaining complex topics in a way that is accessible to the layperson.
Where doeslayperson come from?
The first records of the word layperson come from the 1970s. The lay in layperson is an adjective meaning “belonging to, pertaining to, or performed by the people or laity, as distinguished from the clergy.”
Lay comes from the Middle English lai, meaning “uneducated” or “not belonging to the clergy.” It ultimately comes from the Greek 徱ó, meaning “of the people” (as in the common people).
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How islaypersonused in real life?
Layperson is perhaps most commonly used in non-religious contexts. It’s sometimes used in the phrase Dz’s terms (though layman’s terms is more common).
Quite a nice summary of how enters , probably for the layperson rather than the specialist though! Eliminating bias in AI is no easy feat, but fixes do exist
— umbrelladata (@umbrelladata)
It’s been five days since starting IM and my senior resident’s consistent praise for me is that I’m good at explaining things to patients in Dz’s terms. Ma’am, don’t be fooled, I am a layperson in scrubs.
— Jillian Millares (@JilllMilll)
Let’s make this the year to normalise “I don’t know”.
Scientific issues? As a layperson, I don’t know.
Work expertise? I don’t know, but she does – ask her?
Complex social policy? You don’t need my knee jerk reaction, I’m going to have to read more, because I DON’T KNOW.
— Beth Murray (@bmbm)
Try using layperson!
Which of the following terms can be used as a synonym of layperson?
A. average person
B. nonexpert
C. member of the laity
D. all of the above
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