member of the public

noun

A regular or normal citizen, as opposed to an official or agent acting in an official capacity.

Meanings

nounmember of the public (plural members of the public)

plural members of the public

  1. A regular or normal citizen, as opposed to an official or agent acting in an official capacity.

    The average member of the public has only a vague idea of the wide-ranging integration of effort needed to put on an intensive train service like the Southern's and run it with so high a degree of safety and reliability.

    1963 February, “Nobody runs this railway, mate”, in Modern Railways, page 73
    1 more example

    There was an easy charm to Stars in Their Eyes – inspired by the Dutch series Soundmixshow – in that a member of the public was lifted from their day job, given a makeover to sing their song on stage to a huge television audience, and then... normal life resumed.

    2021 September 15, Laura Martin, “How talent shows became TV's most bizarre programmes”, in BBC
Cite this entry
APA

member of the public. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/member%20of%20the%20public

MLA

“member of the public.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/member%20of%20the%20public. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “member of the public,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/member%20of%20the%20public.

Source: member of the public on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.