man-eater
Americannoun
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an animal, especially a tiger or lion, that eats or is said to eat human flesh.
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a cannibal.
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Slang. femme fatale.
noun
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an animal, such as a tiger, that has become accustomed to eating human flesh
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any of various sharks that feed on human flesh, esp the great white shark ( Carcharodon carcharias )
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a human cannibal
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informal a woman with many lovers
Etymology
Origin of man-eater
First recorded in 1590–1600
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.
"And that takes a long time to do. Meanwhile, that tiger, if it is a proclaimed man-eater, or has a propensity to kill humans and eat them, is going to continue on the rampage."
From Salon • May 18, 2022
The next day, as dynamite was dropped into the creek in hopes of raising Lester's body, Matawan's acting mayor offered a $100 reward for anyone who "kills the man-eater."
From US News • Jul. 6, 2016
In Hawaii the term niuhi, meaning "man-eater", was used in native songs thought to refer to tiger sharks.
From BBC • Aug. 30, 2015
Actually, Ben Kingsley plays that version of Damian Hale, a financial predator who plies Manhattan’s asphalt seas with the dead eyes of a man-eater.
From Washington Post • Jul. 9, 2015
But surely Boots could never have become a man-eater.
From "Tiger, Tiger" by Lynne Reid Banks
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.
