Meaning & use
asylum seeker
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountablelegal
a person who has left their country and asked another country for protection
Grammar: Countable: an asylum seeker, two asylum seekers. It refers to the person, not the request.
Patterns
- an asylum seeker from somewhere
- asylum seekers arriving in a country
- the rights of asylum seekers
The city opened a center for asylum seekers awaiting decisions.
As an asylum seeker, she cannot work until her case is decided.
Thousands of asylum seekers arrived at the border last month.
Word forms
| plural | asylum seekers |
|---|
Common combinations
- asylum seeker status
- He was granted asylum seeker status while his case was reviewed.
- a flood of asylum seekers
- The government faced criticism over its handling of a flood of asylum seekers.
- asylum seekers and refugees
- The charity helps both asylum seekers and refugees.
- apply as an asylum seeker
- She applied as an asylum seeker after crossing the border.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- asylum noun
- protection given by a country to someone who has left their own country
Commonly confused: asylum seeker or refugee?
asylum seeker vs refugee
People often use the two words as if they were the same. Strictly, an asylum seeker is still waiting for legal recognition; a refugee has already received it.
Practice
She arrived last year and is still waiting for a decision on her request, so she is officially an ______.
Choose one answer.
An asylum seeker has applied for protection but has not yet been recognized. A refugee would already have been accepted, and a citizen would have full legal status.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “asylum seeker”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.