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View synonyms for

human

[ hyoo-muhnor, often, yoo ]

adjective

  1. of, relating to, characteristic of, or having the nature of people:

    human frailty.

  2. consisting of people:

    the human race.

  3. of or relating to the social aspect of people:

    human affairs.

  4. sympathetic; humane:

    a warmly human understanding.



noun

human

/ ˈːə /

adjective

  1. of, characterizing, or relating to man and mankind

    human nature

  2. consisting of people

    the human race

    a human chain

  3. having the attributes of man as opposed to animals, divine beings, or machines

    human failings

    1. kind or considerate
    2. natural
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a human being; person
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

human

  1. A member of the species Homo sapiens; a human being.
  2. A member of any of the extinct species of the genus Homo, such as Homo erectus or Homo habilis, that are considered ancestral or closely related to modern humans.
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Pronunciation Note

Pronunciations of words like human, huge, etc., with the initial [h] deleted: [yoo, -m, uh, n], [yooj], while sometimes criticized, are heard from speakers at all social and educational levels, including professors, lawyers, and other public speakers.
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Derived Forms

  • ˈܳԲԱ, noun
  • ˈܳ-ˌ, adjective
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Other Word Forms

  • ·· adjective
  • ··Ա noun
  • 󲹱-· adjective
  • ·ٱ·· adjective
  • ··· adjective
  • ··· adjective
  • ܲ·-· adjective
  • ܲ·-··ly adverb
  • ٰԲ·· adjective
  • ܱ·ٰ·· adjective
  • ܲ·· adjective
  • ܲ···ly adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of human1

First recorded in 1350–1400; earlier humain(e), humayn(e), Middle English, from Middle French humain, from Latin ūԳܲ, akin to dzō “human being”; Homo ( def ); spelling human predominant from early 18th century
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Word History and Origins

Origin of human1

C14: from Latin ūԳܲ; related to Latin dzō man
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Idioms and Phrases

see milk of human kindness .
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Synonym Study

Human, humane may refer to that which is, or should be, characteristic of human beings. In thus describing characteristics, human may refer to good and bad traits of a person alike ( human kindness; human weakness ). When emphasis is placed upon the latter, human is thought of as contrasted to divine: To err is human, to forgive divine. He was only human. Humane (the original spelling of human, and since 1700 restricted in meaning) takes into account only the nobler or gentler aspects of people and is often contrasted to their more ignoble or brutish aspect. A humane person is benevolent in treating fellow humans or helpless animals; the word once had also connotations of courtesy and refinement (hence, the application of humane to those branches of learning intended to refine the mind).
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

They were met with a stomach-churning vista of death, a torrid panorama of human suffering.

From

Most fires are deliberately or accidentally started by humans, but favourable weather conditions can make it much easier for fires to ignite and spread quickly.

From

It's just a social, organizational, legal and managerial mechanism whereby a decision is created that has no identifiable human being as its owner.

From

Then an idea came to her during a run: create a model tracking the human impact, including the inevitable increase in HIV/AIDS infection and transmission and the subsequent rise in otherwise preventable deaths.

From

Both species consoled each other in a similar way to humans, with behaviours including embracing, hand-holding, and touching.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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