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Neanderthal
Neanderthal definition
Ne·an·der·thal (nē an′dər t̸hôl′, -täl′)
adjective
- designating, of, or from a valley in the Rhine Province, Germany
- designating or of a widespread form of early human being (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) of the Upper Pleistocene Epoch whose skeletal remains were first found in this valley
- crude or primitive
- reactionary; regressive
Etymology: Ger, lit., Neander valley (Ger thal, tal, valley, akin to dale): after Joachim Neander (1650-80), Ger hymn writer
noun
- a Neanderthal human being
- a crude, primitive, reactionary, etc. person
Often, for adj. 2 & n. 1, Neandertal Ne·an′·der·tal′ (-täl′)
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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