What is the difference between people and persons? These two words not only look very similar, they have similar meanings. But here's the difference:
People should be used when it is functioning as a collective noun as in a group of people. For example, "The people of the United States are very diverse."
Persons, on the other hand, refers to more than one individual or a group of individuals. For instance, "The persons we had dinner with last night were very polite."
At one point, the point of distinction was to use persons with a number. "Three persons went to the beach with us."
Nowadays, people is almost always preferred although persons is still found in some very formal or legal writings.
My recommendation is to go with people but know that you may still see persons on occasion.
For more information, visit:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/people-vs-persons
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