nonhuman

adjective

non·​hu·​man ˌnän-ˈhyü-mən 

-ˈyü-

: not human: such as

a

: being other than a human being

a nonhuman primate/animal

b

: not belonging to, appropriate to, or produced by human beings

nonhuman noises

nonhuman cells

nonhuman noun

Discarding the doctrine of human dignity can mean lowering the moral status of humans or raising the moral status of nonhumans, and Mr. Rachels's emphasis is ultimately on the latter.

—Robert Wright

Examples of nonhuman in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Colossal described it as the most complete sequencing ever done on an extinct nonhuman animal, mapping the thylacine’s genes with more than ninety-nine-per-cent accuracy. —D. T. Max, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2025

While most scientists have long abandoned this view, researchers have not identified a definitive test for the capacity to feel pain in any nonhuman animal. —Bob Fischer, The Conversation, 4 Apr. 2025

The fact that there has been recovery of technology of nonhuman origin. —Selome Hailu, Variety, 9 Mar. 2025

Her writing also asserts that words, often expressed in the Lakota language, are just as capable of fostering vital human and nonhuman connections. —Melissa Ragain, Artforum, 1 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for nonhuman

• acumen
• albumen
• albumin
• bitumen
• cerumen
• curcumin
• illumine
• inhuman
• subhuman
• crewman
• crewmen
• cumin