HOMO ERECTUS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does Homo erectus mean? 

• HOMO ERECTUS (noun)
  The noun HOMO ERECTUS has 1 sense:

1. extinct species of primitive hominid with upright stature but small brain

  Familiarity information: HOMO ERECTUS used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• HOMO ERECTUS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Extinct species of primitive hominid with upright stature but small brain

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Context example:

Homo erectus was formerly called Pithecanthropus erectus

Hypernyms ("Homo erectus" is a kind of...):

homo; human; human being; man (any living or extinct member of the family Hominidae characterized by superior intelligence, articulate speech, and erect carriage)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "Homo erectus"):

Java man; Trinil man (fossil remains found in Java; formerly called Pithecanthropus erectus)

Peking man (fossils found near Beijing, China; they were lost during World War II)

Holonyms ("Homo erectus" is a member of...):

genus Homo (type genus of the family Hominidae)

 Context examples 

Scientists also don’t know what the genetic links are between us and extinct species such as Homo erectus – the oldest known species of human to have had modern human-like body proportions – because everything that is currently known is almost exclusively based on anatomical information, not genetic information.

(‘Game-changing’ research could solve evolution mysteries, University of Cambridge)