superfamily Hominoidea
- noun
- /ˌsuːpərˈfæmɪli hoʊˈmɪnoʊɪdɪə/
- Specialized
- The superfamily Hominoidea encompasses both modern humans and our closest ape relatives.
Examples
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Did you know that humans belong to the superfamily Hominoidea?
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The superfamily Hominoidea includes gorillas and chimpanzees.
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Fossil evidence sheds light on how the superfamily Hominoidea diversified over millions of years.
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Scientists debate the evolutionary relationships within the superfamily Hominoidea.
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The superfamily Hominoidea includes several species of apes and humans.
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Recent studies have revealed new insights into the superfamily Hominoidea and its evolutionary history.
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Primatologists often focus their research on the members of the superfamily Hominoidea to understand human evolution.
Synonyms
A group of animals that includes apes and humans but not monkeys
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines a clear taxonomic label 'superfamily' with the proper name 'Hominoidea', so its meaning as the superfamily (taxonomic group) called Hominoidea is directly derivable from its parts. Although the terms are technical, the compositional pattern (category + name) is transparent and cross-linguistically regular, so a learner who knows both constituents will understand the MWE.
Etymology
Superfamily Hominoidea comes from two parts: superfamily ('big family' of related animals) and Hominoidea (from 'Homo', meaning 'human', plus an ending meaning 'like'), so the name refers to a large group that includes humans and their ape relatives.