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Eurocentric

American  
[yoor-uh-sen-trik, yur-] / ˌjʊər əˈsɛn trɪk, ˌjɜr- /

adjective

  1. centered on Europe and Europeans.

    They have offered insightful but nonetheless Eurocentric analyses of European travelers, losing sight of the larger global context of travel.

  2. considering Europe and Europeans as focal to world culture, history, economics, etc., or viewing everything through the lens of European values, attitudes, and interests.

    The style represented a celebration of Black beauty and a repudiation of Eurocentric beauty standards.


Eurocentric British  
/ ˌjʊərəʊˈsɛntrɪk /

adjective

  1. chiefly concerned with or concentrating on Europe and European culture

    the Eurocentric curriculum

"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

Other Word Forms


Etymology

Origin of Eurocentric

First recorded in 1960–65; Euro- + -centric


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.

See Examples For:

The Nobel Prize in literature has always been highly Eurocentric, so it is odd that the Netherlands has never fielded a recipient.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

Many evidence-based models were developed from research on predominantly Eurocentric populations, explained Carl Highshaw, executive director of the National Assn. of Social Workers’ California chapter.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 21, 2025

Guèye himself defended the memo as part of a broader mission to "restore African dignity and identity", particularly in the arts sector, which he believes has been overly influenced by Eurocentric beauty standards.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2025

DEI has even forced the beauty industry, which has historically focused on products to suit Eurocentric complexions, to acknowledge that people of color buy makeup, too.

From Slate ● Jan. 31, 2025

Second, doesn’t addressing Yali’s question automatically involve a Eurocentric approach to history, a glorification of western Europeans, and an obsession with the prominence of western Europe and Europeanized America in the modern world?

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

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