racial
racial — adjective
1. Connected with situations where a person gets worse treatment or suffers harm si
Connected with situations where a person gets worse treatment or suffers harm simply because others see them as belonging to a particular race — for example, losing a job opportunity, being refused a home to rent, or receiving poorer medical care.
Andrés's report showed clear racial bias in the company's hiring process.
collocation: racial bias
The new law makes racial discrimination in housing a serious crime.
collocation: racial discrimination
Layla filed a complaint after experiencing racial abuse at her workplace.
Studies show that racial profiling by police affects people from many backgrounds.
- discriminatory
more formal and legal; focuses on unequal treatment rather than the basis (race, gender, age)
- racist
stronger and more accusatory; describes beliefs in racial superiority, not just unfair treatment
- prejudiced
more personal; describes an individual's biased attitudes rather than systemic practices
- colour-blind
describes treating people without regard to race at all
文法句型
racial + noun (discrimination, bias, abuse)
用法筆記
Frequently paired with nouns describing unfair treatment, such as 'discrimination', 'bias', 'abuse', 'profiling', 'hatred', and 'inequality'. Unlike the general sense (sense 3), this sense carries a strong negative judgement about the unfairness of the treatment.
常見錯誤
2. Describing situations, relationships, or events that involve people from differe
Describing situations, relationships, or events that involve people from different racial groups — such as friendships, marriages, community interactions, or social conflicts that cross racial boundaries.
The school's programme helped reduce racial tensions among students from different backgrounds.
collocation: racial tensions
Rohan and Dahlia are friends who demonstrate racial harmony in their class.
collocation: racial harmony
The city has seen growing racial diversity in its neighbourhoods over the past decade.
Dewi organised a community event to promote better racial understanding between groups.
- interracial
more specific; only describes things happening between people of different races
- cross-cultural
broader; refers to interactions between different cultures, which may overlap with race
- multiethnic
focuses on ethnic groups rather than racial categories
- intraracial
within a single racial group; rare in everyday usage
文法句型
racial + noun (harmony, tensions, diversity)
用法筆記
Common in phrases describing social relations, including 'racial harmony', 'racial tensions', 'racial diversity', and 'racial integration'. In this sense, the focus is on the interaction or relationship between racial groups, not on unfair treatment.
常見錯誤
3. Connected with the idea of race or with a person's perceived racial background —
Connected with the idea of race or with a person's perceived racial background — used when talking about identity, categories, demographics, or general topics related to race, without necessarily implying unfair treatment or interracial contact.
The census form asks people to indicate their racial background on the questionnaire.
collocation: racial background
Ingrid wrote an essay about racial identity in modern British society.
The university is collecting data on the racial makeup of its first-year students.
The study examined how racial categories are used in official government surveys.
文法句型
racial + noun (background, identity, group)
用法筆記
The most general and neutral sense of 'racial'. Use it when simply stating a connection to race without focusing on fairness (sense 1) or interracial interaction (sense 2). Common with formal or statistical contexts like census data, academic research, and official forms.