What does homo mean?
Homo is an uncommon word for a human being or man, especially one regarded as simply a person rather than in a particular social or biological category. In modern English it has a markedly informal, literary, archaic, or deliberately unconventional tone, so it is much less natural than person, human, or man. A separate use of the word has become central to biological classification: Homo is the genus that includes Homo sapiens, the species containing modern humans, as well as extinct species such as Homo erectus and Homo neanderthalensis. The term is also used as a combining form in words connected with sameness or similarity, including homogeneous, homologous, and homonym. Context is therefore important: lowercase homo can sound old-fashioned or unusual in ordinary prose, capitalized Homo normally denotes the taxonomic genus, and the historical use of homo as a label for a gay man is now dated and offensive.
An informal word for a human being or man; also, in biology, the genus containing modern humans and several extinct species.
"The story contrasts the behaviour of one homo with that of the community as a whole."
The general sense is uncommon and often literary or archaic. Capital Homo is the standard form for the biological genus.
A dated term for a gay man.
"The term appeared in the article, but it is now considered offensive."
This sense is no longer standard and may be offensive, especially in contemporary usage.
A form meaning same or alike, as in homogeneous, homologous, and homonym.
"The suffix homo- combines with -logy to form homology."
In this use, it is normally written with a hyphen when attached to another element.
The plural is used for the informal noun sense; taxonomic genus names are normally discussed in the singular or used in the names of species.
"The essay reflects on how differently the two homos respond to danger."
The word that means “man” in Latin also became the name of the human evolutionary genus.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does homo come from?
Homo comes from Latin homo, meaning “man” or “human being.” The same Latin word was the source of forms such as human and humanoid, while its derivatives in other languages helped establish the scientific terminology of the human genus. The combining form homo- comes through Latin and Greek roots associated with sameness and appears in words such as homogeneous, homologous, and homonym.
Related word forms
How homo is actually used
In ordinary English, the word is uncommon, informal, and sometimes literary or archaic. Its use for a gay man is dated and may be regarded as offensive. In biological classification, the name is capitalized as Homo.