Anthropocene
Syllables: An·thro·po·cene/ˈæn.θɹə.pəˌsiːn/US/ˈæn.θɹə.pəˌsin/
Anthropocene proper noun: a proposed but rejected geological epoch, in which the effect of human activities on the global environment has disrupted the natural variability of the Holocene, ending the Holocene. (It was rejected as formal scientific nomenclature in 2024 owing to not meeting a bar for how a geological epoch is formally defined.).
Proper noun
the Anthropocene
- A proposed but rejected geological epoch, in which the effect of human activities on the global environment has disrupted the natural variability of the Holocene, ending the Holocene. (It was rejected as formal scientific nomenclature in 2024 owing to not meeting a bar for how a geological epoch is formally defined.)
- Holonyms: Quaternary (current period), Age of Man (dated)
- The tempo of evolution in South American hamsters was very rapid – in the course of the Pliocene and Anthropocene 40 genera were formed here, at which time a series of them attained the level of tribe and subtribe (Oxymycteri, Phyllotiini, Ichthyomyini).1960, Doklady. Biological Sciences Sections, volumes 132–135, Washington, D.C.: American Institute of Biological Sciences, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 640, column 2
- The era of human impact on the environment, irrespective of its nomenclatural status as a geological event or epoch; especially, the era of large impact (i.e., on industrial and postindustrial scale).
- Holonyms: Holocene (current epoch) < Quaternary (current period), Age of Man (dated)
- Meronym: assholocene (informal)
Anthropocene meaning in Tamil and Persian
Anthropocene in Tamil
- அண்மை மாந்த மண்ணியல்
Anthropocene in Persian
- the current geological period
- آنتروپوسین ânterupusin
Examples of Anthropocene in a sentence
- Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and climatic force.2012 January–February, Donald Worster, “A Drier and Hotter Future [review of A Great Aridness: Climate Change and the Future of the...
- Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene.2013 July 20, “Welcome to the Plastisphere: What is Pollution to Some is Opportunity to Others”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845...
- We’re supposed to be living through the Anthropocene, an era where human activity has become the dominant influence on the environment.2020 April 9, Richard Horton, “Coronavirus is the greatest global science policy failure in a generation”, in The Guardian:
- The guardians of the world’s official geological timescale have firmly rejected a proposal to declare an Anthropocene epoch, after an epic academic row.2024 March 22, Damian Carrington, “Geologists reject declaration of Anthropocene epoch”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
Origin of Anthropocene
From a combination of anthropo- + -cene modeled on Holocene, Pleistocene, and similar. First attested in the 1960s in the translations of Russian-language scientific articles, possibly with a different meaning. Supposedly coined independently in the 1980s by American biologist Eugene Stoermer and later popularized by Dutch atmospheric chemist Paul J. Crutzen in 2000.
Words formed from Anthropocene
Questions about Anthropocene
- What does Anthropocene mean?
- Anthropocene means a proposed but rejected geological epoch, in which the effect of human activities on the global environment has disrupted the natural variability of the Holocene, ending the Holocene. (It was rejected as formal scientific nomenclature in 2024 owing to not meeting a bar for how a geological epoch is formally defined.).
- What is Anthropocene in Tamil?
- Anthropocene in Tamil is அண்மை மாந்த மண்ணியல். See Anthropocene meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use Anthropocene in a sentence?
- Welcome to the Anthropocene, the epoch when humans have become a major geological and climatic force.
- What part of speech is Anthropocene?
- Anthropocene is a proper noun.
- How do you pronounce Anthropocene?
- Anthropocene is pronounced /ˈæn.θɹə.pəˌsiːn/ (UK).
Words near Anthropocene in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: Anthropocene (page history and authors); Anthropocene (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Anthropocene.wav.
Cite this entry: “Anthropocene.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/anthropocene. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.