superman

American  

[soo-per-man] / ˈsu pərˌmæn /

noun

plural

supermen

1. a person of extraordinary or superhuman powers.

2. an ideal superior being conceived by Nietzsche who attains happiness, dominance, and creativity.

3. a superior being conceived as the product of human evolution.

4. one who prevails by virtue of being a ruthless egoist of superior strength, cunning, and force of will.

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superman British  

/ ˈsuːpəˌmæn /

noun

1. (in the philosophy of Nietzsche) an ideal man who through integrity and creativity would rise above good and evil and who represents the goal of human evolution

2. any man of apparently superhuman powers

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Superman ¹ Cultural  

1. A seemingly immortal, superhuman comic-strip character created in the late 1930s, who hides his powers beneath the persona of Clark Kent, a mild-mannered newspaper reporter. Only when there is a threat of danger — often to his fellow reporter and secret love, Lois Lane — does Clark transform himself into the caped hero with x-ray vision.

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Superman ² Cultural  

1. An ideal of humanity found in Thus Spake Zarathustra, by Friedrich Nietzsche. The Superman, or Overman (the German is Übermensch), is the single goal of all human striving, for which people must be willing to sacrifice all. It is doubtful that Nietzsche thought of the Overman as an individual person.

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Gender

See -man.

Discover More

Superman has been adapted for various radio and television series and a number of highly successful films.

Etymology

Origin of superman

1900–05; super- + man, translation of German Übermensch

Explanation

Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's...Superman! As you might be able to guess from this comic book hero's name, a superman is a person with great strength or power beyond that of ordinary humans. The term superman was originally a translation of the German Übermensch, literally "overman." This first superman was a philosophical concept, an ideal human for ordinary people to aspire to. Through the 1920s and 30s, it was common to describe a great athlete or brilliant politician as a superman. In 1938, the crime-fighting, cape-wearing Superman first appeared in comic book form. Superman is credited with being the original superhero.

Example Sentences

Allen finished with 394 yards, with two passing and two rushing touchdowns, in another superman performance in an incredible game that somehow surpassed the hype that surrounded a meeting between the last two league MVPs.

From BBC • Sep. 8, 2025

I cannot entirely fault those who are still looking for a hero or a superman who cuts through the noise and nonsense.

From Salon • Jan. 26, 2025

At the center of this universe sits Papageno, a colorful, intractably disorderly oddball in muddied outdoor gear, an everyman turned unlikely superman who, in spurning the cultural mores that would shackle him, rises above them.

From New York Times • May 21, 2023

He fabricated a new persona, that of a meritocratic superman.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 30, 2022

He said Harold thats Prof Nemurs frist name I know Charlie is not what you had in mind as the frist of your new breed of intelek** coudnt get the word *** superman.

From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes