Claim: Venom is in comic books published in the United States.

The meaning of the word American in the English language varies according to the historical , geographical , and political context in which it is used . American is derived from America , a term originally denoting all of the New World -LRB- also called the Americas -RRB- . In some expressions , it retains this Pan-American sense , but its usage has evolved over time and , for various historical reasons , the word came to denote people or things specifically from the United States of America .   In modern English , Americans generally refers to persons or things related to the United States of America ; among native English speakers this usage is almost universal , with any other use of the term requiring specification . However , this usage is seen by some as a semantic `` misappropriation '' by those who argue that `` American '' should be widened in English to also include people or things from anywhere in the American continent . Similar semantic contention exists concerning the use of English words like `` Spanish '' , `` British '' , `` Scandinavian '' , etc. .   The word can be used as either an adjective or a noun -LRB- viz . a demonym -RRB- . In adjectival use , it means `` of or relating to the United States '' ; for example , `` Elvis Presley was an American singer '' or `` the man prefers American English '' . In its noun form , the word generally means a resident or citizen of the US , or occasionally someone whose ethnic identity is simply `` American '' . The noun is rarely used in American English to refer to people not connected to the United States . When used with a grammatical qualifier , the adjective American can mean `` of or relating to the Americas '' , as in Latin American or Indigenous American . Less frequently , the adjective can take this meaning without a qualifier , as in `` American Spanish dialects and pronunciation differ by country '' , or the name of the Organization of American States . A third use of the term pertains specifically to the indigenous peoples of the Americas , for instance , `` In the 16th century , many Americans died from imported diseases during the European conquest '' .   Compound constructions such as `` African Americans '' likewise refer exclusively to people in or from the United States of America , as does the prefix `` Americo - '' . For instance , the Americo-Liberians and their language Merico derive their name from the fact that they are descended from African American settlers , i.e. former slaves in the United States of America .