human
n. countablen. a person, rather than an animal or a machine. You use this word when you want to talk about people as a biological group.
n. a member of the species Homo sapiens. Often used in scientific or science-fiction contexts to distinguish people from other organisms or artificial intelligences.
Every human needs food and water to survive.
Scientists are studying how the virus spreads from animals to humans in crowded environments.
The philosopher argued that the capacity for complex language is what truly distinguishes the human from other primates, regardless of shared genetic material.
Etymology tree Latin hūmānus Old French umain Middle French humainbor. Middle English humayne English human From Late Middle English humaigne, humayne, humain, from Middle French humain, from Old French humain, umain (“of or belonging to man”, adjective), from Latin hūmānus m (“of man, human”, adjective); see there for further details. Spelling human has been predominant since the early 18th century. Compare, and possibly related to man.
Often used as a collective noun ('humanity') or in the plural ('humans') when discussing biological or social traits.