cannibal

American  

[kan-uh-buhl] / ˈkæn ə bəl /

noun

1. a person who eats human flesh, especially for magical or religious purposes, as among certain tribal peoples.

2. any animal that eats its own kind.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or characteristic of a cannibal.

2. given to cannibalism.

cannibal British  

/ ˈkænɪbəl /

noun

1. 1. a person who eats the flesh of other human beings

   2. ( as modifier )

      cannibal tribes

2. an animal that feeds on the flesh of others of its kind

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Other Word Forms

• cannibally adverb

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.

Example Sentences

I spend enough time sitting around the house worrying about what I said to someone in high school that may have hurt their feeling so bad it turned them into a cannibal.

From Salon • Mar. 17, 2025

Early roles included a cannibal in a commercial for Hertz rent-a-car and an abominable snowman in the 1981 film “Caveman.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 28, 2023

These cannibal dads had bulging bellies and a tendency to regurgitate the eggs when handled, the team reported in the American Naturalist.

From Scientific American • Oct. 1, 2023

And now, perhaps: baby-eating cannibal, according to new research into the parental habits of these giant amphibians.

From New York Times • Apr. 20, 2023

“I call it Sunday Afternoon on the Island of Ahwoo-Ahwoo. I got the idea from Lumawoo’s cannibal book,” Beowulf explained.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• anthropophaginian
• anthropophagite
• anthropophagus
• man-eater
• people-eater