humanity
Americannoun
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all human beings collectively; the human race; humankind.
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the quality or condition of being human; human nature.
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the quality of being humane; kindness; benevolence.
- Synonyms:
- goodwill, tenderness, sympathy
- Antonyms:
- unkindness, inhumanity
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the humanities,
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the study of classical languages and classical literature.
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the Latin and Greek classics as a field of study.
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literature, philosophy, art, etc., as distinguished from the natural sciences.
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the study of literature, philosophy, art, etc.
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noun
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the human race
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the quality of being human
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kindness or mercy
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(plural) the study of literature, philosophy, and the arts
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the study of Ancient Greek and Roman language, literature, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of humanity
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English humanite, from Latin hūmānitās; equivalent to human + -ity
Explanation
Humanity is the human race, which includes everyone on Earth. It’s also a word for the qualities that make us human, such as the ability to love and have compassion, be creative, and not be a robot or alien. The word humanity is from the Latin humanitas for "human nature, kindness.” Humanity includes all the humans, but it can also refer to the kind feelings humans often have for each other. Awww. But when you talk about humanity, you could just be talking about people as a whole. When people do bad things, it tests your faith in humanity. When people ask for money to help feed starving children, they're appealing to your sense of humanity.
Vocabulary lists containing humanity
John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961
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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.
Humanity has repeatedly learned that its place in the cosmos is less special than once believed.
From Science Daily • Jun. 24, 2026
Carayol said the Humanity for Grenfell group "came together to try and see what we can do to try and resolve this horrible situation that we find ourselves in".
From BBC • Jun. 14, 2026
The release of "Magnificent Humanity" follows several years of study by the Church of AI-related technologies.
From Barron's • May 25, 2026
That includes Espino, who said Habitat for Humanity recently had found a way to help finance the rebuild for her multigenerational family.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
Mom blabbed on and on about how you joined the track team and had lots of new friends and went on a Habitat for Humanity trip last fall.
From "P.S. I Miss You" by Jen Petro-Roy
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.
