# men

/ˈmɛn/ (US) · /mˈɛn/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/men
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 2. humanity

noun · CEFR B2 · Literary

all people in the world; the human race.

For teachers: humanity or mankind viewed as a collective whole.

- The old stories say that men have always looked at the stars and wondered.
- In the philosophical treatises of that era, the term 'men' was frequently employed to encompass the entirety of the human experience.

Usage: Often used with a definite article as 'the men' or simply 'men' in older texts.

Teaching tip: This usage is increasingly replaced by gender-neutral terms like 'humanity' or 'people' in modern English.

### 3. soldiers

noun · CEFR B2 · Formal

the soldiers in an army who are not officers.

For teachers: enlisted personnel in a military or paramilitary organisation, distinguished from commissioned officers.

- The captain ordered his men to set up camp before it got dark.
- The general insisted on visiting the tents to check on the welfare of his men after the long march.

Usage: Commonly appears in the phrase 'officers and men'.

## Examples

- The men are waiting for the bus.
- A group of men gathered in the park to play chess every Saturday morning.
- Sociologists often study how men in different cultures navigate the transition from adolescence to adulthood and the responsibilities that come with it.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.