hominin

noun

hom·​i·​nin ˈhä-mə-nən How to pronounce hominin (audio)
-ˌnin
: any of a taxonomic tribe (Hominini) of hominids that includes recent humans together with extinct ancestral and related forms

Examples of hominin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
However, a new study indicates that hominins may have adapted to desert life much earlier than previously thought. Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 16 Jan. 2025 These costs are thought to have hindered how hominins used these foods and delayed their adoption into our diets. Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025 Another set of tracks does not resemble modern human footprints but is still clearly left by a fully bipedal hominin. Ryan McRae, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Dec. 2024 Perhaps hominin fossils were there, too, waiting to be discovered. Donald C. Johanson, Scientific American, 15 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for hominin 

Word History

Etymology

New Latin Hominini, from Homin-, Homo + -ini, tribe suffix, from Latin -inus -ine entry 1

First Known Use

1989, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hominin was in 1989

Dictionary Entries Near hominin

Cite this Entry

“Hominin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hominin. Accessed 26 Jan. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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