humanity

Noun

humanity (countable and uncountable, plural humanities)

1. (uncountable) Humankind; human beings as a group.
   • Then he commenced to talk, really talk. and inside of two flaps of a herring's fin he had me mesmerized, like Eben Holt's boy at the town hall show. He talked about the ills of humanity, and the glories of health and Nature and service and land knows what all.1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC
   • At last the concourse is relatively clear of humanity and the task of clearing up can begin.1962 April, J. N. Faulkner, “Summer Saturday at Waterloo”, in Modern Railways, page 265

   Synonyms:

   humankind, Man, mankind, peoplekind, personkind, race, human race, Homo sapiens

2. (uncountable) The human condition or nature.
3. (uncountable) The quality of being benevolent; humane traits of character; humane qualities or aspects.
   • Think of that; by that sweet girl that old man had a child: hold ye then there can be any utter, hopeless harm in Ahab? No, no, my lad; stricken, blasted, if he be, Ahab has his humanities!1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “The Ship”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC, page 90
   • Killing Animals Humanely. Humanity requires that animals be killed in the quickest and least painful manner. The following circular has been sent by our American Humane Education Society very widely through the country.[1890], The American Humane Education Society, “Kiling Animals Humanely”, in A[nna] Sewell, Black Beauty: […], American edition, Boston, Mass.: […] [T]he American Humane Education Society, →OCLC

   Synonyms:

   humaneness

4. (countable) Any academic subject belonging to the humanities.
   • Philosophy is a humanity while psychology is a science.