ape-man

[eyp-man]

noun, plural ape-men.

a hypothetical primate representing a transitional form between true humans and the anthropoid apes, considered by some as constituting the genus Australopithecus.
a human assumed to have been reared by apes.

Origin of ape-man

First recorded in 1875–80

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for apeman

Historical Examples of apeman

It was not the voice of an apeman, or an apewoman, but held a human quality.
B. C. 30,000
Sterner St. Paul Meek
The blow was deflected by the upraised arm of the apeman and fell on his shoulder.
B. C. 30,000
Sterner St. Paul Meek
You understand that no matter what the Apeman does, you must not try to slay him?
Astounding Stories, June, 1931
Various
Apeman would not know this: would not realize his limitations.
Astounding Stories, June, 1931
Various
Apeman would be a child in the hands of his brethren, who could not know him.
Astounding Stories, June, 1931
Various

British Dictionary definitions for apeman

apeman

noun plural -men

any of various extinct apelike primates thought to have been the forerunners, or closely related to the forerunners, of modern man

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for apeman

ape-man

hypothetical "missing link," 1879, in a translation of Haeckel, from ape (n.) + man (n.). Man-ape is attested from 1878. The name Martin Halfape appears in an English roll from 1227.