nonhuman

adjective

non·​hu·​man ˌnän-ˈhyü-mən How to pronounce nonhuman (audio)
-ˈyü-
: not human: such as
a
: being other than a human being
a nonhuman primate/animal
b
: not belonging to, appropriate to, or produced by human beings
nonhuman noises
nonhuman cells
nonhuman noun
Discarding the doctrine of human dignity can mean lowering the moral status of humans or raising the moral status of nonhumans, and Mr. Rachels's emphasis is ultimately on the latter. Robert Wright

Examples of nonhuman in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Shelley’s narrator has a unique relationship to the nonhuman world. Ilana Masad, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2024 The world of digital, nonhuman influencers continue to evolve. Wendy Lee, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024 Such long-term beaver-human relationships suggest the human and nonhuman animals had learned to co-exist. Paige Madison, Discover Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023 But the space agency reportedly euthanized what appeared to be its last 27 nonhuman primates on a single day in 2019. Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 The notion that nonhuman animals are clued in to what’s happening in one another’s minds has been controversial among animal-cognition researchers. Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2024 Supply chains are often talked about in nonhuman corporate terms, but they are made up of people whose livelihoods depend on them. 1000 Landscapes For 1 Billion People, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Of the viruses known to infect humans, about 80% are naturally occurring in nonhuman hosts, primarily in mammals and birds and, to a lesser extent, in arthropods and other wildlife. Raúl Rivas González, Discover Magazine, 23 Feb. 2024 The notion of nonhuman animal rights has perturbed numerous legal scholars, prominent among them Richard A. Posner, a former federal judge who taught at the University of Chicago. Sam Roberts, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nonhuman.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of nonhuman was in 1839

Dictionary Entries Near nonhuman

Cite this Entry

“Nonhuman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonhuman. Accessed 3 May. 2024.

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