eugenics

American  

[yoo-jen-iks] / yuˈdʒɛn ɪks /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

1. the study of or belief in the possibility of improving the qualities of the human species or a human population, especially by such means as discouraging reproduction by people presumed to have inheritable undesirable traits negative eugenics or encouraging reproduction by people presumed to have inheritable desirable traits positive eugenics.

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eugenics British  

/ ˈjuːdʒənɪst, juːˈdʒɛnɪks /

noun

1. (functioning as singular) the study of methods of improving the quality of the human race, esp by selective breeding

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eugenics Cultural  

1. The idea that one can improve the human race by careful selection of those who mate and produce offspring.

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Discover More

Eugenics was a popular theory in the early twentieth century but is no longer taken seriously, primarily because of the horrors of the eugenic efforts of the Nazi regime in Germany.

Other Word Forms

• eugenic adjective
• eugenically adverb
• eugenicist noun
• eugenist noun

Etymology

Origin of eugenics

First recorded in 1880–85; see origin at eugenic, -ics

Explanation

Eugenics is the idea that you can engineer a better human population by breeding for certain genes. Since such a program would entail ranking human beings and the desirability of their genes, eugenics is widely considered unethical. The term eugenics was coined in 1883 by Francis Galton, a cousin of Charles Darwin, and it comes from the Greek roots eu-, "good," and genos, "birth." Galton believed that the human race could be improved by encouraging people who have "good" genes to marry early and have lots of children, and discouraging people with "bad" genes from procreating at all. Nazi Germany provided a horrifying example of such a program at work, and eugenics is now seen as abhorrent.

Example Sentences

Schottenstein, an Orthodox Jew, was perplexed at the criticism that the campaign smacked of eugenics, the Nazi-embraced theory that selective reproduction can advance the human race.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 30, 2025

Treating autism as a problem that needs fixing, some claim, is eugenics.

From Slate • Sep. 25, 2025

But his claim was roundly refuted by experts on eugenics history.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 9, 2025

Some critics interpreted the ads as a play on eugenics, the discredited belief that humanity could be improved through selective breeding.

From BBC • Sep. 3, 2025

By 1930, when Louie was entering his teens, California was enraptured with eugenics, and would ultimately sterilize some twenty thousand people.

From "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand