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Glite Dictionary
mere mortal

mere mortal

13 5.3
An ordinary person with no special powers or status
  • noun
translation icon : simple mortal
  • I could tell you what us mere mortals would do in this situation.
  • the rest of us mere mortals
  • help us mere mortals
  • most of us mere mortals

But for the rest of us mere mortals, your CEO is just a guy.

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Examples

  • I think they know things that people, mere mortals at a much smaller level do not know.

  • For now, I have to muddle through life as a mere mortal.

    Blog text (13)

  • You will live and die a mere mortal.

    #Lucky Number (2015)

  • Most of us who are mere mortals are not like that.

    Film Courage

  • But unfortunately we are mere mortals.

    Death Becomes Her (1992)

  • For mere mortals, this would be impossible.

    The Academy of Magic (2020)

  • But this question is not for mere mortals to discuss.

    Blog text (5)

  • Now please go away and let the rest of us mere mortals enjoy this blog.

    Blog text (14)

  • I have tried to convince them that I'm a mere mortal, but they refuse to believe me.

    Blog text (5)

  • For mere mortals, achieving such a high level of success seems almost impossible.

Synonyms

mortal
vsmere mortal
334 3.8

A human being who will die

refers to social ordinariness rather than biological mortality
common man
vsmere mortal
30 2.0

An ordinary man without a title, rank, or special rights

emphasizes contrast with people seen as having higher status or power
ordinary
vsmere mortal
5 2.0

A person or thing that is not special

focuses on contrast with those possessing special status or abilities
common person
vsmere mortal
1 1.4

A person who has no title and is an ordinary member of society

is used to stress contrast with those who have special power or status
vulgaris
vsmere mortal
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A person from the common people in historical Latin texts

is the everyday expression used to contrast ordinary people with powerful figures

Antonyms

superhuman
43 6.0

Stronger or more able than a normal person

extraordinary
  • Formal
20 7.1

Serving in a special official role, for example an ambassador, with powers beyond regular officials

How Extraordinary

god
960 3.7
demigod
  • Literature
10 8.1
hero
∞ 1.1
exceptional
  • Specialized
27 4.8
notable
5 4.1
mere mortal
13 5.3
ordinary
5 2.0

Surface Forms

mere mortal singular
mere mortals plural

Morphology

mere + mortal

The phrase combines 'mere' (only/insignificant) with 'mortal' (human, subject to death) to yield the easily inferable sense 'just a human' or 'an ordinary person.' This compositional meaning is straightforward and mirrored in many languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would reliably understand the MWE.

Etymology

Mere mortal comes from a simple picture: mortal means a person who can die and mere means 'only', so it shows someone who is just human and not a god. That's why we use it to say someone is an ordinary person, without special power.