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
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.
It made our technological world accessible, inclusive, and humane.
From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026
Magyar's promise to build "a more humane, efficient country" resonates with all those fed up with the governing party, especially the young.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 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
“If you truly were acting on humanitarian grounds, you would presumably implement a much more humane policy regarding these people.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026
“The horses were more humane than the troopers; they stepped over fallen victims,” recalled Amelia Boynton.
From "Because They Marched" by Russell Freedman
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.
