mankind
Americannoun
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the human race; human beings collectively without reference to gender; humankind.
It is no longer possible, if it ever was, for a single human brain to hold all of mankind's scientific knowledge.
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men, as distinguished from women.
Some still maintain that mankind is stronger, braver, smarter than womankind, but many others consider that absolute nonsense.
noun
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human beings collectively; humanity
-
men collectively, as opposed to womankind
Usage
Nowadays many people object to the use of mankind to refer to all human beings and use the term humankind instead
Gender
Is man gender-neutral? See man.
Other Word Forms
- premankind noun
Etymology
Origin of mankind
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English; man ( def. ) + kind 2 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“It is part of the created order and a national right of mankind.”
From Salon
“This is the greatest capitalist system in the history of mankind,” said Mike Scott, founder of private-equity firm Pelican Energy Partners.
From Barron's
It’s one giant step for you and a microscopic dent in mankind’s debt mountain.
From MarketWatch
“The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind,” he proclaimed at the outset.
From Salon
For much of mankind’s history, mere day-to-day survival has been the real priority — and, lest we forget, it still is for a good part of the planet’s population.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
