humane
Americanadjective
-
characterized by tenderness, compassion, and sympathy for people and animals, especially for the suffering or distressed.
humane treatment of prisoners.
- Synonyms:
- charitable, benignant, benevolent, sympathetic, gentle, compassionate, tender, kindhearted, kindly, kind, merciful
-
acting in a manner that causes the least harm to people or animals.
humane trapping of stray pets.
-
of or relating to humanistic studies.
adjective
-
characterized by kindness, mercy, sympathy, etc
-
inflicting as little pain as possible
a humane killing
-
civilizing or liberal (esp in the phrases humane studies, humane education )
Related Words
See human.
Other Word Forms
- humanely adverb
- humaneness noun
- unhumane adjective
- unhumanely adverb
- unhumaneness noun
Etymology
Origin of humane
First recorded in 1425–75; originally a variant of human, restricted to above senses from the 18th century; germane, german
Explanation
A humane person is one who shows great compassion and caring for others, including animals, and who tries whenever possible to alleviate another's suffering. The idea of being humane is linked to a higher level of a person's character. While the word is derived from the word human, the sad fact is that a person can be human without being humane. Britain's Royal Humane Society, created in 1774 to rescue drowning people, focuses on recognizing acts of human bravery. In the United States, however, the Humane Society works to eliminate cruelty to animals. Still, both focus on kindness and the humane care of others.
Vocabulary lists containing humane
100 SAT Words Beginning with "H"
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"The Bet" by Anton Chekhov
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The Stranger
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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.
“English” insists on viewing its Iranian characters through a humane, rather than geopolitical, lens.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
It made our technological world accessible, inclusive, and humane.
From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026
When World War I arrived, Galsworthy—like many humane Europeans of his generation who had believed that mass barbarism was becoming a thing of the past—was shattered.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Teams searching for an escaped capybara say they are closing in on her location, with humane traps now being used as part of efforts to bring her home.
From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026
In a civil and humane society, each man is able to fulfill those obligations according to his own inclinations and abilities.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
