cannibal
Americannoun
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a person who eats human flesh, especially for magical or religious purposes, as among certain tribal peoples.
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any animal that eats its own kind.
adjective
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pertaining to or characteristic of a cannibal.
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given to cannibalism.
noun
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a person who eats the flesh of other human beings
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( as modifier )
cannibal tribes
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an animal that feeds on the flesh of others of its kind
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cannibal
First recorded in 1545–55; from Spanish caníbal, variant of caríbal, from canib-, caribe (from Taíno; see Carib ( def. )) + -al -al 1; from the belief that the Caribs of the West Indies ate human flesh
Explanation
A cannibal is someone who eats human flesh. It’s a good idea not to get too friendly with one, especially if you’re covered in delicious-smelling spices. The word cannibal comes from the Spanish word caníbalis, which was Christopher Columbus’s version of the word Caribs, the name people from the Caribbean called themselves. They meant Carib as in “brave ones” so something got lost in translation! Most cannibals are fictional — like Queequeg from Moby Dick or Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs. This word can apply to animals that eat their own kind: for example, the cannibal shrimp eats other shrimp. Ew.
Vocabulary lists containing cannibal
"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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Milkweed
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Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
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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.
Among large-cap stocks, has anyone else noticed a developing Fat Cannibal Staredown?
From Barron's • Dec. 4, 2025
A Fat Cannibal Staredown is always a volatile situation, especially when combined with a Muffin Top Market—technology, media, and telecom now combine for 45% of the S&P 500 index.
From Barron's • Dec. 4, 2025
With a career spanning nearly four decades, American death metal progenitors Cannibal Corpse have been one of the most infamous, enduring bands in the genre.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 3, 2025
For metalheads, it is a stacked season: Baroness and Cannibal Corpse return, as do Pittsburgh punks Code Orange.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 6, 2023
Cannibal is from Span. canibal, earlier caribal, i.e.
From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest
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.
