alien and foreign share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. alien means “a person who comes from a foreign country; someone who does not owe allegiance to your country”. foreign means “of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)”. foreign is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈeɪliən/
1.n.a person who comes from a foreign country; someone who does not owe allegiance to your country
2.n.anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
3.n.a form of life assumed to exist outside the Earth or its atmosphere
| alien | foreign | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈeɪliən/ | /ˈfɔɹən/ |
| Said | AY-lee-uhn | FAW-ruhn |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| Letters | 5 | 7 |
| Parts of speech | noun, adjective, verb | adjective |
| Senses | 6 | 4 |
| How common | Common | Core |
| Synonyms | foreigner, noncitizen, outlander | none recorded |
Full entry for alien · Full entry for foreign · More comparisons
/ˈfɔɹən/
1.adj.of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own)
“foreign trade”
2.adj.relating to or originating in or characteristic of another place or part of the world
“foreign nations”
3.adj.not contained in or deriving from the essential nature of something
“an economic theory alien to the spirit of capitalism”