humanoid

1 of 2

adjective

hu·​man·​oid ˈhyü-mə-ˌnȯid 

ˈyü-

: having human form or characteristics

humanoid dentition

humanoid robots

humanoid

2 of 2

noun

plural humanoids

: a humanoid being : a nonhuman creature or being with characteristics (such as the ability to walk upright) resembling those of a human

Why do people respond so strongly to penguins? First, they stand straight and walk upright, like us, so we see them as little humanoids—a convention of headwaiters, ten thousand nuns, plump babies in snowsuits.

—Diane Ackerman

Those tales of the deep blended narratives of voyages of exploration … with fantastic additions drawn from an ancient repertoire of sea monsters and mutant humanoids.

—Simon Schama

Did you know?

A humanoid robot, sometimes called an android, is a robot that resembles a human. Accounts of the yeti, Sasquatch, and Bigfoot continue to fascinate us mainly because of their humanoid characteristics. The idea of creating a monstrous humanoid, such as the Jewish golem or Victor Frankenstein's creation, has intrigued us for centuries. "Humanoid Animation" is a standard for creating humanlike figures for video that lets the same figure be used in a variety of 3-D games—some of which have nothing but humanoids for characters.

Examples of humanoid in a Sentence

Adjective

The movie is about humanoid aliens invading Earth.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Amid growing labor shortages, Brett Adcock’s Figure offers an audacious solution: humanoid robots. —Stephen Thomas, TIME, 5 Sep. 2024

Once upon a time the future of retail financial services was humanoid robots in bank branches, which seems unlikely to me. —David G.w. Birch, Forbes, 5 Sep. 2024

Noun

Investors also submitted questions via Say Technologies about Tesla’s progress developing humanoid robotics that the company aims to put to work in its factories. —Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 22 July 2024

This paper summarizes an autonomous driving project by musculoskeletal humanoids. —IEEE Spectrum, 14 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1918, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1870, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

humanoid

adjective

hu·​man·​oid ˈhyü-mə-ˌnȯid 

ˈyü-

: having human form or characteristics

humanoid noun

Medical Definition

humanoid

adjective

hu·​man·​oid ˈhyü-mə-ˌnȯid  ˈyü- 

: having human form or characteristics

humanoid dentition

humanoid noun