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modern man

modern man

3 3.7
The group that includes all living human beings
  • noun
  • /ˈmɒdərn mæn/
translation icon : hombre moderno
  • Many challenges faced by modern man include climate change and social inequality.
  • modern man and woman
  • condition of modern man

But all these other big animals that you find in North America, they evolved and then modern man showed up and killed them all.

Examples

  • The gracefully crafted lectures provide nothing less than a comprehensive analysis of the political condition of modern man.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Severin Hansen is a modern man.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • I am a modern man.

  • Such is the essential experience of modern man.

    Academic text (1995)
  • " This," he said, "is the final step in making modern man satisfied with himself."

    Academic text (1997)
  • Modern man, possibly, has too much to hide to sustain a friendship in the ancient sense.

    Academic text (1994)
  • Today we are experiencing something that looks very much like the death of modern man, indeed that looks very much like the death of Western man.

    Academic text (1993)
  • Kolnai writes admiringly about the insights of Tocqueville into the political and spiritual condition of modern man.

    Academic text (2001)
  • According to the protagonist, an overdeveloped, overrefined consciousness is the characteristic affliction of modern man.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Modern man has made significant advancements in technology and science.

Synonyms

man
vsmodern man
1.0

Any human being, male or female

refers to the species as a whole including all existing populations
mankind
vsmodern man
400 1.0

All people on Earth viewed as a single group

is a scientific label rather than a general traditional term
human beings
vsmodern man
362 1.0

All people considered together as a group

is the scientific term emphasising species identity and populations
humankind
vsmodern man
66 2.3

All people as one group

focuses more on species classification and existing populations
Homo sapiens
vsmodern man
  • Specialized
3 3.2

The scientific name for the modern human group, different from extinct species like Neanderthals

refers to that species as including all present human populations
Homo sapiens sapiens
vsmodern man
  • Specialized
1 6.5

A group of humans that includes all living people

refers more generally to the species rather than only the modern group
Homo hominis
vsmodern man
  • Formal
9.9

A Latin phrase that scientists use to mean humans

is the common English scientific term rather than a Latin phrase

Surface Forms

modern man singular
modern men plural

Morphology

modern + man

A B1 learner who knows 'modern' (contemporary) and 'man' (a human or humanity) can readily infer 'modern man' as humans of the present/modern era; the meaning is directly compositional and follows a common adjective + noun pattern. Although context resolves whether 'man' means 'humanity' or 'male', the basic sense is transparent and cross-linguistically accessible.

Etymology

Modern man may come from scientists who studied old bones and wanted a quick name for people like us. They used modern to mean 'new' and man to mean 'human', so modern man now refers to the human species alive today.