those people pl (plural only)
- (derogatory) Any outsiders of a clique.
- Members of a particular group, collectively.
- Drawing the rhetorical distinction between the "people like yourselves" at the overwhelmingly white rally and "those people" protesting was, needless to say, a provocative framing of the issue.
- The country would be much better off, in his opinion, if "those people" (the term he used in his speech) just went somewhere and shut up.
Usage notes
edit
- In the United States, this expression, however intended by the speaker, has sometimes been interpreted as indicative of racism when used in discourse with those of a race different from the speaker's, or of discrimination on an ethnic or religious basis in analogous situations.
See also
edit
