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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
One crafty bird species may be the latest example of social learning in nonhuman animals. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 14 Nov. 2024 Taking place over 24 hours, the book follows six astronauts (with some brief stop-offs from the perspective of nonhuman characters) from Russia, England, Japan, Italy, and the United States. Emma Alpern, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024 By defining what constitutes normal application activity—such as typical data access patterns and communication between systems—security teams can detect when an application’s nonhuman identities begin behaving unexpectedly. Sameer Malhotra, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024 Will they not only be moved by a fairy tale machined for a big, bad tech guy, the toughest of antiheroes to side with, but also believe that a nonhuman intelligence can capably capture and compel their imaginations? Randy Boyagoda, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for nonhuman 

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 23 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on nonhuman

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!