"the man" meaning in English

See the man in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Audio: En-au-the man.ogg
Etymology: Originally from US English. Head templates: {{head|en|noun}} the man, {{tlb|en|singular only}} (singular only)
  1. The oppressive powers that be, including the government and corporations; the system, as coordinated outside of one’s control. Tags: singular, singular-only Categories (topical): Personifications Translations (the oppressive powers that be): överhet [common-gender] (Swedish)
    Sense id: en-the_man-en-noun-NoSki3xX Disambiguation of Personifications: 63 6 31 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English singularia tantum, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with German translations, Terms with Spanish translations, Terms with Swedish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 62 11 27 Disambiguation of English singularia tantum: 65 10 25 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 72 6 22 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 64 5 30 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 66 5 29 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 67 12 21 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 66 10 24 Disambiguation of Terms with Swedish translations: 57 11 31 Disambiguation of 'the oppressive powers that be': 89 9 1
  2. An oppressive or domineering person of authority, usually male; especially, one's boss. Tags: singular, singular-only Translations (the best person for the job): der Mann [masculine] (German), el hombre [masculine] (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-the_man-en-noun-ofgk3ypF Disambiguation of 'the best person for the job': 0 68 32
  3. The best man for a job; someone with exceptional skills. Tags: singular, singular-only Synonyms: da man Derived forms: stick it to the man
    Sense id: en-the_man-en-noun-p5hUqtU7

Alternative forms

{
  "etymology_text": "Originally from US English.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "noun"
      },
      "expansion": "the man",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "singular only"
      },
      "expansion": "(singular only)",
      "name": "tlb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "62 11 27",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "65 10 25",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English singularia tantum",
          "parents": [
            "Singularia tantum",
            "Nouns",
            "Lemmas"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "72 6 22",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "64 5 30",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "66 5 29",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "67 12 21",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "66 10 24",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "57 11 31",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "63 6 31",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Personifications",
          "orig": "en:Personifications",
          "parents": [
            "Narratology",
            "Drama",
            "Literature",
            "Theater",
            "Culture",
            "Entertainment",
            "Writing",
            "Art",
            "Society",
            "Human behaviour",
            "Language",
            "All topics",
            "Human",
            "Communication",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The man gets you down.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "text": "I'm sorry I couldn’t meet you earlier, but I spent all night working for the man.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1966 December, Stephen Stills, “For What It's Worth”performed by Buffalo Springfield:",
          "text": "It starts when you're always afraid / Step out of line, the man come and take you away",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1968, Nathan C. Heard, Howard Street, New York: The New American Library, pages 22–23:",
          "text": "“Bitch, shut up that noise!” Cowboy hissed hotly from somewhere in the darkness ahead of her. “You wanna bring the man down on me or somethin’? […]”",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1969, John Fogerty (lyrics and music), “Proud Mary”, in Bayou Country, performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival:",
          "text": "Left a good job in the city / Workin' for the man every night and day",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1996, “Hooker with a Penis”, performed by Tool:",
          "text": "And in between sips of Coke / He told me that he thought we were sellin' out / Layin' down, suckin' up to the man / Well now I've got some / Advice for you, little buddy / Before you point the finger / You should know that I'm the man / I'm the man and you're the man / And he's the man as well",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2023 September 5, Arwa Mahdawi, “Why all the Burning Man schadenfreude? Where do I start ...”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:",
          "text": "[…]once people such as Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk show up to your party, there is no longer anything countercultural about it. You are not rebelling against the man. You are the man.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The oppressive powers that be, including the government and corporations; the system, as coordinated outside of one’s control."
      ],
      "id": "en-the_man-en-noun-NoSki3xX",
      "links": [
        [
          "powers that be",
          "powers that be"
        ],
        [
          "system",
          "system"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "89 9 1",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "the oppressive powers that be",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "överhet"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Near-synonym: old man"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An oppressive or domineering person of authority, usually male; especially, one's boss."
      ],
      "id": "en-the_man-en-noun-ofgk3ypF",
      "links": [
        [
          "boss",
          "boss"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "0 68 32",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "the best person for the job",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "der Mann"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "0 68 32",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "the best person for the job",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "el hombre"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [],
      "derived": [
        {
          "_dis1": "0 0 100",
          "word": "stick it to the man"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "You’re the man!",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1989, Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing:",
          "text": "Buggin' Out: You the man.\nMookie: No, you the man.\nBuggin' Out: No, I'm just a struggling Black man trying to keep my dick hard in a cruel and harsh world.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2004 January 31, George Kimball, “Super Bowl XXXVIII: Rags-to-riches story for Carolina Panthers quarter-back Delhomme”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "[Jake Delhomme] has been “The Man” ever since, leading the Panthers to a remarkable eight come-from-behind wins in what Fox describes as Carolina's “outhouse-to-penthouse” season.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The best man for a job; someone with exceptional skills."
      ],
      "id": "en-the_man-en-noun-p5hUqtU7",
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "_dis1": "0 0 100",
          "word": "da man"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-the man.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/05/En-au-the_man.ogg/En-au-the_man.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/En-au-the_man.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "The Man"
  ],
  "word": "the man"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English singularia tantum",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Spanish translations",
    "Terms with Swedish translations",
    "en:Personifications"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "stick it to the man"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Originally from US English.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "noun"
      },
      "expansion": "the man",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "singular only"
      },
      "expansion": "(singular only)",
      "name": "tlb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The man gets you down.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "text": "I'm sorry I couldn’t meet you earlier, but I spent all night working for the man.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1966 December, Stephen Stills, “For What It's Worth”performed by Buffalo Springfield:",
          "text": "It starts when you're always afraid / Step out of line, the man come and take you away",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1968, Nathan C. Heard, Howard Street, New York: The New American Library, pages 22–23:",
          "text": "“Bitch, shut up that noise!” Cowboy hissed hotly from somewhere in the darkness ahead of her. “You wanna bring the man down on me or somethin’? […]”",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1969, John Fogerty (lyrics and music), “Proud Mary”, in Bayou Country, performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival:",
          "text": "Left a good job in the city / Workin' for the man every night and day",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1996, “Hooker with a Penis”, performed by Tool:",
          "text": "And in between sips of Coke / He told me that he thought we were sellin' out / Layin' down, suckin' up to the man / Well now I've got some / Advice for you, little buddy / Before you point the finger / You should know that I'm the man / I'm the man and you're the man / And he's the man as well",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2023 September 5, Arwa Mahdawi, “Why all the Burning Man schadenfreude? Where do I start ...”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:",
          "text": "[…]once people such as Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk show up to your party, there is no longer anything countercultural about it. You are not rebelling against the man. You are the man.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The oppressive powers that be, including the government and corporations; the system, as coordinated outside of one’s control."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "powers that be",
          "powers that be"
        ],
        [
          "system",
          "system"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ]
    },
    {
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Near-synonym: old man"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An oppressive or domineering person of authority, usually male; especially, one's boss."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "boss",
          "boss"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "You’re the man!",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1989, Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing:",
          "text": "Buggin' Out: You the man.\nMookie: No, you the man.\nBuggin' Out: No, I'm just a struggling Black man trying to keep my dick hard in a cruel and harsh world.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2004 January 31, George Kimball, “Super Bowl XXXVIII: Rags-to-riches story for Carolina Panthers quarter-back Delhomme”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "[Jake Delhomme] has been “The Man” ever since, leading the Panthers to a remarkable eight come-from-behind wins in what Fox describes as Carolina's “outhouse-to-penthouse” season.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The best man for a job; someone with exceptional skills."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "singular",
        "singular-only"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-the man.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/05/En-au-the_man.ogg/En-au-the_man.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/En-au-the_man.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "da man"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "the oppressive powers that be",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "överhet"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "the best person for the job",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "der Mann"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "the best person for the job",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "el hombre"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "The Man"
  ],
  "word": "the man"
}

Download raw JSONL data for the man meaning in English (4.4kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-15 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (8a39820 and 4401a4c). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.