persona non grata

noun

per·​so·​na non gra·​ta pər-ˈsō-nə-ˌnän-ˈgra-tə  -ˈgrä- 

plural personae non gratae pər-ˈsō-(ˌ)nē-ˌnän-ˈgra-(ˌ)tē 

-ˈgrä-, 

-ˌnī-, 

-ˌtī

: a person who is unacceptable or unwelcome

Luis Villoro is hardly a persona non grata. As he approaches the age of eighty, his position in the intelligentsia is secure.

—Scott Sherman

—typically used without a or the

When I met her, she was persona non grata back home, having disgruntled the authorities somehow. She'd been living out of a suitcase for years, bouncing from one Western European capital to another …

—Laura Esther Wolfson

… English scientist James Lovelock, co-author of the Gaia hypothesis and once an environmental demigod. Lovelock has become persona non grata by saying that the ecosphere is so resilient no amount of human malfeasance, including nuclear war, could end life.

—Gregg Easterbrook

"We'd been very good friends for millions of years and I thought it was a bit much for them suddenly to be personae non gratae and out of my life."

—Paul McCartney

Examples of persona non grata in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After the Supreme Council of National Defense met in Bucharest, Dan said the Russian consul in the Black Sea port of Constanta has been declared persona non grata and that the consulate will be closed. —Arkansas Online, 30 May 2026

After the Supreme Council of National Defense meeting in Bucharest, Dan said that the Russian consul in the Black Sea port city of Constanta has been declared persona non grata and that the consulate there will be closed. —Stephen McGrath, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026

DiZoglio has completely alienated herself from the Democratic power structure and is persona non grata in the party. —Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 7 May 2026

Fidel Castro will always be persona non grata in Miami, even in fiction. —Sarah Moreno, Miami Herald, 16 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, unacceptable person

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for persona non grata

• acuminata
• desiderata
• fasciculata
• microbiota
• agata
• bharata
• cantata
• costata
• ephrata
• errata
• falcata
• mahratta