Dictionary.com
definitions

man-made

[man-meyd]
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR man-made ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

produced, formed, or made by humans.
produced artificially; not resulting from natural processes.
Textiles.
  1. (of a fiber) manufactured synthetically from a cellulosic or noncellulosic base; produced chemically.
  2. (of a fabric or garment) constructed of synthetically made fibers.

RELATED CONTENT

Lexical Investigations: Art
A motley combination of Anglo-Saxon, Latin, and Germanic dialects, the English language (more or less as we know it) coalesced between the 9th and 13th centuries. Since then, it has continued to import and borrow words and expressions from around the world, and the meanings have mutated. (Awesome and awful once meant nearly the same thing.) Some specimens in the English vocabulary have followed unusually circuitous routes …
READ MORE
Take A Ride Around The World On These Unusual Transports
One way to get to know a country is through its food. Another way is by using the country’s public transportation. Some unique modes of transportation are just for fun, like dog-sledding trips in Norway and zorbing in New Zealand (which involves rolling down a hill inside a giant inflatable ball, just saying). Other means of transportation are more practical . . . here’s a …
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

bogus, counterfeit, ersatz, factitious, imitation, manufactured, mock, phony, plastic, sham, simulated, specious, spurious, substitute, synthetic, unnatural, unreal, fabricated, faked, false

Origin of man-made

First recorded in 1710–20
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for manmade

Contemporary Examples of manmade

  • Fifty years ago, we were just beginning to learn some important lessons from natural disasters, epidemics, and manmade tragedies.

    The Daily Beast logo

  • The official language deployed in natural and manmade disasters can often be formulaic and confusing.

    The Daily Beast logo

  • The only way to honor our tragic histories is to create a future for our children free of manmade tragedy.

    The Daily Beast logo
    The Lessons of the Nakba

    Ziad J. Asali

    May 11, 2012

  • Staff members are accorded rooms in luxurious palaces or five-star hotels with views of manmade, pristine lakes.

    The Daily Beast logo
    When Bush Caved to Egypt

    Matt Latimer

    January 30, 2011

  • A country so steeped in manmade misfortunes, so proud of its ethos of self-support, was caught unaware when nature struck.

    The Daily Beast logo
    Israel's Inferno

    Fania Oz-Salzberger

    December 5, 2010

Historical Examples of manmade

  • The three crowded into the cool recesses of the manmade aerie.

  • The message sank in: foreigners love disasters, natural and manmade.

    After the Rain

    Sam Vaknin

  • The study of the Law isn't like the study of physics or whatever; these are manmade laws—commands, not descriptions.

    ...Or Your Money Back

    Gordon Randall Garrett

British Dictionary definitions for manmade

man-made

adjective

made or produced by man; artificial
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
Word Origin and History for manmade
adj.

also man-made, c.1718, from man (n.) + made. In early use typically of institutions, etc., and opposed to what is natural or god-made. Of fibers, foodstuffs, etc., from mid-20c.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper