simian

[ sim-ee-uhn ]

noun

1. any of the monkeys or apes, classified into two subdivisions, the platyrrhines (New World monkeys) and the catarrhines (Old World monkeys and apes, including humans). haplorhine.
2. Disparaging and Offensive. (used as a slur against a member of a racial or ethnic minority group, especially a Black person.)

adjective

1. of or relating to any of the monkeys or apes.
2. characteristic of apes or monkeys:

   long, simian fingers.

3. Disparaging and Offensive. (used to describe a member of a racial or ethnic minority group, especially a Black person.)

simian

/ ˈsɪmɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a monkey or ape Also (rare)simiousˈsɪmɪəs

noun

1. a monkey or ape

simian

/ sĭm′ē-ən /

Adjective

1. Resembling or characteristic of apes or monkeys.

Noun

1. An ape or monkey. Ther term simian is no longer used in scientific contexts.
2. Compare prosimian

Sensitive Note

See simianization.

Other Words From

• sim·i·an·i·ty [sim-ee-, an, -i-tee], noun
• sub·sim·i·an adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of simian¹

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin sīmi(a) “an ape,” probably from the Greek nickname and personal name Sīmiās (derivative of sīmus “flat-nosed, snub-nosed,” from Greek sīmós ) + -an adjective suffix; -an

Word History and Origins

Origin of simian¹

C17: from Latin sīmia an ape, probably from sīmus flat-nosed, from Greek sīmos

Example Sentences

Behind-the-canvas anecdotes are delicious, such as when “Candid Camera” host Allen Funt complained that Hirschfeld made him look like a simian.

From Washington Post

But soon after they salvaged the illustrated simian, it was actually he who saved them.

From The Daily Beast

After Justice and Simian won Best Video for “We Are Your Friends,” West crashed the stage with an “Aw, hell naw!”

From The Daily Beast

Professor Garner has studied simian speech so carefully that he is able to converse with Monkeys to a limited extent.

From Project Gutenberg

The manner in which the worn surface of the tooth slopes downwards and forwards has been claimed as another simian character.

From Project Gutenberg

Do you think that the unrestrained performance of Jazz-music conduces to the moral betterment of the simian proletariat?

From Project Gutenberg

About that God he writes his first paragraph, untroubled by any simian suspicions.

From Project Gutenberg

Up the ladder scrambled, simian in agility, a tall and wiry man of middle age.

From Project Gutenberg