"self-acting, moving or acting on its own," 1812 (automatical is from 1580s; automatous from 1640s), from Greek automatos of persons "acting of one's own will;" of things "self-moving, self-acting," used of the gates of Olympus and the tripods of Hephaestus (also "without apparent cause, by accident"), from autos "self" (see auto-) + matos "thinking, animated," *men- (1) "to think."
Of involuntary animal or human actions, from 1748, first used in this sense by English physician and philosopher David Hartley. Meaning "done by self-acting machinery" is by 1850. In reference to a type of firearm, from 1877; specifically of machinery that imitates human-directed action from 1940.
by 1794 as a Christian theological position that Jesus Christ possessed a human nature only, from humanitarian + -ism. As "the doctrine that philanthropy or ethical benevolence is the highest of human duties," it is attested by 1838.
also apeman, hypothetical "missing link" between the highest anthropoid apes and human beings, progenitor of the human race, 1869, in a translation of Haeckel, from ape (n.) + man (n.). Man-ape is attested from 1823 as "anthropoid ape, orangutan." The name Martin Halfape appears in an English roll from 1227.
Latin phrase from Swift's epitaph; "savage indignation;" an intense feeling of contemptuous anger at human folly.
"person of strength and honor," 1907, from Yiddish, from German Mensch, literally "man, person," from Old High German mennisco "human," from Proto-Germanic adjective *manniska- "human," from *manna- (from PIE root *man- (1) "man"). Middle English had cognate menske "honor, reputation" (c. 1200, from Old Norse mennska "human nature"), which, as modern mense "propriety, decorum," lingered in Scottish and North of England dialect long enough to be in Scott and Burns.
also pre-history, "the human past prior to recorded history," 1866, perhaps a back-formation from prehistoric. Related: Prehistorian.
