homo politicus
- noun
- /ˈhoʊmoʊ pəˈlɪtɪkəs/
- Jargon
- Despite his career in engineering, Mark is known as a homo politicus who never shies away from debate.
Examples
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As a homo politicus, she dedicates her life to community service.
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To be a homo politicus in today's world requires resilience and commitment.
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Many protesters at the rally identified themselves as homo politicus, fighting for social justice.
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Many homo politici believe in the power of grassroots movements.
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Many protesters at the rally identified themselves as homo politicus, fighting for social justice.
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To be a homo politicus in today's world requires resilience and commitment.
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As a homo politicus, she dedicates her life to community service.
Synonyms
A person who works in government or politics, often as an elected leader
A person who campaigns for political or social change
An informal word for someone who works to gain or hold public office
An informal word for a person who works to get and hold public office
A person who spends most of their life working in government as their main job
How Political
- Jargon
Surface Forms
Morphology
Homo + politicus
The phrase is compositionally built from Latin roots: 'homo' (human) + 'politicus' (political), so the intended meaning 'a politically engaged person' can be derived if a learner recognises those roots. However, the second element is a Latin form rather than ordinary English and the expression is scholarly/technical (cf. homo economicus), so an average B1 learner—even knowing the parts—may not reliably map it to the precise sense without prior exposure.
Etymology
Homo politicus comes from Latin words homo ('man') and politicus ('political') and paints a picture of someone who lives in the public square, always speaking and acting in public life. So it now means 'a person who is actively involved in politics'.