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hunter-gatherer

American

[huhn-ter-gath-er-er] / ˈhʌn tərˈgæð ər ər /

noun

Anthropology.

a member of a group of people who subsist by hunting, fishing, or foraging in the wild.

hunter-gatherer British

adjective

(of a society, lifestyle, etc) surviving by hunting animals and gathering plants for subsistence

"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

noun

a member of such a society

"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

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.

In addition, many present-day hunter-gatherer societies still include scavenging as part of their subsistence practices, demonstrating that it remains a practical and effective strategy.

From Science Daily • Jan. 19, 2026

Back before California was settled by Europeans and others, the Miwok and Nisenan subsisted on a hunter-gatherer diet of acorns, venison, salmon, pine nuts, elderberries, and other berries and plants.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 23, 2025

That was probably useful in a hunter-gatherer society.

From Slate • Aug. 5, 2025

It looks at the transition from hunter-gatherer societies to farming communities.

From BBC • Dec. 29, 2024

The sago eaters persisting in lowland swamps exemplify the nomadic hunter-gatherer band organization that must formerly have characterized all New Guineans.

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

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023