Nearby Words

manless

[man] Origin

man

1[man] noun, plural men, verb, manned, man·ning, interjection
noun
1.
an adult male person, as distinguished from a boy or a woman.
2.
a member of the species Homo sapiens or all the members of this species collectively, without regard to sex: prehistoric man.
3.
the human individual as representing the species, without reference to sex; the human race; humankind: Man hopes for peace, but prepares for war.
4.
a human being; person: to give a man a chance; When the audience smelled the smoke, it was every man for himself.
5.
a husband.
EXPAND
6.
a male lover or sweetheart.
7.
a male follower or subordinate: the king's men. He's the boss's number one man.
8.
a male employee or representative, especially of a company or agency: a Secret Service man; a man from the phone company.
9.
a male having qualities considered typical of men or appropriately masculine: Be a man. The army will make a man of you.
10.
a male servant.
11.
a valet.
13.
an enthusiast or devotee: I like jazz, but I'm essentially a classics man.
14.
Slang. male friend; ally: You're my main man.
15.
a term of familiar address to a man; fellow: Now, now, my good man, please calm down.
16.
Slang. a term of familiar address to a man or a woman: Hey, man, take it easy.
17.
one of the pieces used in playing certain games, as chess or checkers.
18.
History/Historical. a liegeman; vassal.
19.
Obsolete. manly character or courage.
20.
the man, Slang.
a.
a person or group asserting authority or power over another, especially in a manner experienced as being oppressive, demeaning, or threatening, as an employer, the police, or a dominating racial group.
b.
a person or group upon whom one is dependent, as the drug supplier for an addict.
Also, the Man.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
21.
to furnish with men, as for service or defense.
22.
to take one's place for service, as at a gun or post: to man the ramparts.
23.
to strengthen, fortify, or brace; steel: to man oneself for the dangers ahead.
24.
Falconry. to accustom (a hawk) to the presence of men.

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Manless is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
interjection
25.
Slang. an expression of surprise, enthusiasm, dismay, or other strong feeling: Man, what a ball game!
26.
man up, Informal. to act in a typically masculine way, as in taking responsibility or making tough decisions: He should man up and meet the challenge.
27.
as one man, in complete agreement or accord; unanimously: They arose as one man to protest the verdict.
28.
be one's own man,
a.
to be free from restrictions, control, or dictatorial influence; be independent: Now that he has a business he is his own man.
b.
to be in complete command of one's faculties: After a refreshing nap he was again his own man.
29.
man and boy, ever since childhood: He's been working that farm, man and boy, for more than 50 years.
30.
man's man, a man who exemplifies masculine qualities.
31.
to a man, with no exception; everyone; all: To a man, the members of the team did their best.

Origin:
before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English man(n); cognate with German Mann, Dutch man, Old Norse mathr, Gothic manna; (v.) Middle English mannen, Old English mannian to garrison

man·less, adjective
man·less·ly, adverb
man·less·ness, noun
man·ness, noun


Man, male, gentleman are nouns referring to adult human beings who are biologically male; that is, physiologically equipped to initiate conception but not to bear children. Man is the most general and most commonly used of the three; it can be neutral, lacking either favorable or unfavorable implication: a wealthy man; a man of strong character, of unbridled appetites. It can also signify possession of the most typical or desirable masculine qualities: to take one's punishment like a man. Male emphasizes the physical or sexual characteristics of a man; it may also refer to an animal or plant: a male in his prime; two males and three females in the pack; a male of the genus Ilex. In scientific and statistical use, male is the neutral contrastive term to female: 104 females to every 100 males; Among birds, the male is often more colorful than the female. Gentleman, once used only of men of high social rank, now also specifies a man of courtesy and consideration: a real gentleman; to behave like a gentleman. Gentleman is also used as a polite term of reference (This gentleman is waiting for a table) or, only in the plural, of address (Are we ready to begin, gentlemen?). See also manly, male.


The use of man1 to mean “human being,” both alone and in compounds such as mankind, has met with objection in recent years, and the use is declining. The objection is based on the idea that man is most commonly used as an exclusive, sex-marked noun meaning “male human being.” Critics of the use of man as a generic maintain that it is sometimes ambiguous when the wider sense is intended (Man has built magnificent civilizations in the desert), but more often flatly discriminatory in that it slights or ignores the membership of women in the human race: The man in the street wants peace, not war. EXPAND
Although some editors and writers reject or disregard these objections to man as a generic, many now choose instead to use such terms as human being(s), human race, humankind, people, or, when called for by style or context, women and men or men and women. See also -man, -person, -woman.

COLLAPSE
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
man (mæn)
 
n , pl men
1.  an adult male human being, as distinguished from a woman
2.  (modifier) male; masculine: a man child
3.  archaic a human being regardless of sex or age, considered as a representative of mankind; a person
4.  (sometimes capital) human beings collectively; mankind: the development of man
5.  Also called: modern man
 a.  a member of any of the living races of Homo sapiens, characterized by erect bipedal posture, a highly developed brain, and powers of articulate speech, abstract reasoning, and imagination
 b.  any extinct member of the species Homo sapiens, such as Cro-Magnon man
6.  a member of any of the extinct species of the genus Homo, such as Java man, Heidelberg man, and Solo man
7.  an adult male human being with qualities associated with the male, such as courage or virility: be a man
8.  manly qualities or virtues: the man in him was outraged
9.  a.  a subordinate, servant, or employee contrasted with an employer or manager
 b.  (in combination): the number of man-days required to complete a job
10.  (usually plural) a member of the armed forces who does not hold commissioned, warrant, or noncommissioned rank (as in the phrase officers and men)
11.  a member of a group, team, etc
12.  a husband, boyfriend, etc: man and wife
13.  an expression used parenthetically to indicate an informal relationship between speaker and hearer
14.  a movable piece in various games, such as draughts
15.  slang (South African) any person: used as a term of address
16.  a vassal of a feudal lord
17.  as one man with unanimous action or response
18.  be one's own man to be independent or free
19.  he's your man he's the person needed (for a particular task, role, job, etc)
20.  man and boy from childhood
21.  sort out the men from the boys, separate the men from the boys to separate the experienced from the inexperienced
22.  to a man
 a.  unanimously
 b.  without exception: they were slaughtered to a man
 
interj
23.  informal an exclamation or expletive, often indicating surprise or pleasure
 
vb , men, mans, manning, manned
24.  to provide with sufficient people for operation, defence, etc: to man the phones
25.  to take one's place at or near in readiness for action
26.  falconry to induce (a hawk or falcon) to endure the presence of and handling by man, esp strangers
 
[Old English mann; related to Old Frisian man, Old High German man, Dutch man, Icelandic mathr]
 
usage  The use of man to mean human beings in general is often considered sexist. Gender-neutral alternatives include human beings, people and humankind. The verb to man can also often be replaced by to staff, to operate and related words
 
'manless
 
adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

man
early 12c., "to furnish (a fort, ship, etc.) with a company of men," from man (n.). Meaning "to take up a designated position on a ship" is first recorded 1690s. Related: Manned.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

man definition


  1. n.
    one's friend; a buddy, not necessarily male. (Also a term of address.) : Look, man, take it easy!
  2. exclam.
    Wow! (Usually Man!) : Man, what a bundle!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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