Neanderthal

American  

[nee-an-der-thawl, -tawl, -tahl, ney-ahn-der-tahl] / niˈæn dərˌθɔl, -ˌtɔl, -ˌtɑl, neɪˈɑn dərˌtɑl /

Also Neandertal

adjective

1. of or relating to Neanderthal man.

2. (often lowercase) primitive, unenlightened, or reactionary; culturally or intellectually backward.

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noun

1. Neanderthal man.

2. (often lowercase)

   1. an unenlightened or ignorant person; barbarian.

   2. a reactionary; a person with very old-fashioned ideas.

Neanderthal British  

/ nɪˈændəˌtɑːl /

adjective

1. relating to or characteristic of Neanderthal man

2. primitive; uncivilized

3. informal ultraconservative; reactionary

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noun

1. a person showing any such characteristics

Neanderthal Scientific  

/ nē-ăn′dər-thôl′,-tôl′ /

1. An extinct variety of human that lived throughout Europe and in parts of western Asia and northern Africa during the late Pleistocene Epoch, until about 30,000 years ago. Neanderthals had a stocky build and large skulls with thick eyebrow ridges and big teeth. They usually lived in caves, made flaked stone tools, and were the earliest humans known to bury their dead. Neanderthals were either a subspecies of modern humans (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) or a separate, closely related species (Homo neanderthalensis). They coexisted with early modern humans (Cro-Magnons) for several thousand years before becoming extinct, but are not generally believed to have interbred with them.

2. See also Mousterian

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Neanderthal Cultural  

1. The ancient and now extinct relatives of modern humans. Neanderthals lived in Europe about 150,000 years ago and were the earliest form of the human species, Homo sapiens.

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Discover More

The term Neanderthal is sometimes used to refer to a person who is thought to have primitive or unenlightened ideas: “I tried talking politics to Joe, but he's a real Neanderthal.”

Other Word Forms

• Neanderthaler
  noun

Etymology

Origin of Neanderthal

First recorded in 1860–65; after Neanderthal, valley in Germany, near Düsseldorf, where evidence of Neanderthal man was first found

Explanation

A neanderthal is someone who is rude and not very smart. If your brother interrupts your garden party by spraying your guests with a hose, you can call him a neanderthal. When neanderthal is spelled with a lower-case n, it means a cretin or a dolt — a rough, mean, and slightly foolish person. If you spell it with a capital N, it means an extinct species of human being, and it's the root of the lower-case version. The word Neanderthal is German, named for the Neander Valley where human fossils have been found, and around 1926 neanderthal became popular British slang for a "big, brutish, stupid person."

Example Sentences

Researchers compared their results with the Neanderthal fossil known as Thorin, discovered in Mandrin Cave in France.

From Science Daily • Apr. 22, 2026

Researchers propose that this behavior could reflect territorial tensions between Neanderthal communities, possibly linked to competition for resources or space.

From Science Daily • Apr. 12, 2026

Whether driven by survival needs, conflict, or both, this behavior reveals a complex and sometimes brutal side of Neanderthal life.

From Science Daily • Apr. 12, 2026

A study out Thursday in Science argues that Neanderthal men and human women were particularly inclined to mate, a sexual habit that offers insight into the evolution of the modern human genome.

From Barron's • Feb. 26, 2026

“An anthropologist friend of mine tells me that they’ve got several others in the collection, as well as the ones on display. Some of them are very old indeed. Neanderthal, you know.”

From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman