What are people who eat meat and plants called?

December 28, 2025 •

4 min read

Approximately 99% of humans are considered omnivores, a biological classification for species that derive energy and nutrients from both plant and animal matter. Understanding what people who eat meat and plants are called requires exploring the distinct dietary roles within the animal kingdom and the specific adaptations that make humans and other creatures such 'all-eaters'.

Quick Summary

People who eat meat and plants are called omnivores. This classification describes a diet that includes both animal and plant matter, distinguishing it from carnivores (meat-eaters) and herbivores (plant-eaters). Omnivores possess unique biological adaptations allowing for this varied diet.

Key Points

Omnivore Defined: An omnivore is an animal that eats both plants and animals, a category that includes humans.
Evolutionary Advantage: The omnivorous diet provides greater food security and adaptability, enabling species like humans to survive in diverse environments by consuming whatever food is available.
Physiological Adaptations: Omnivores possess a combination of dental and digestive features, including both sharp canines and flat molars, suited for processing both meat and vegetation.
Distinction from Other Diets: Unlike carnivores who eat only meat or herbivores who eat only plants, omnivores have a more flexible diet.
Human Biological Blueprint: Despite modern dietary choices, the human body is physiologically an omnivore, equipped to digest and derive nutrients from both plant and animal sources.
Environmental Adaptability: This flexible diet allows omnivores to adjust their food intake based on seasonal availability, as seen in bears who eat berries and fish at different times of the year.

What is an Omnivore?

The term omnivore comes from the Latin words omnis, meaning "all," and vorare, meaning "to devour". This literally translates to "all-eater," accurately describing a creature that can digest and derive nutrition from a wide variety of food sources, including plants, animals, algae, and fungi. Unlike specialists like herbivores or carnivores, omnivores are generalists, possessing the digestive capabilities to handle both plant and animal matter. This flexibility gives them a significant survival advantage, as they can adapt to different environments and food availability throughout the seasons.

Humans are a prime example of an omnivorous species. Our physical and physiological characteristics reflect our evolutionary history of consuming both plants and meat. This includes our dental structure, which features both sharp incisors and canines for tearing, as well as flat molars for grinding. Our digestive system is also a compromise between a herbivore's long tract and a carnivore's shorter one, allowing for the digestion of both fibrous plants and animal protein.

The Biology of an Omnivorous Diet

Omnivory isn't just a behavioral choice; it's a physiological capability shaped by evolution. The digestive systems of different species have distinct adaptations tailored to their primary food source. For omnivores, this results in a versatile but unspecialized system that can handle a broad dietary spectrum, though perhaps not with the same efficiency as a true specialist.

Adaptations for Omnivores

Dental Structure: Omnivores typically have a combination of tooth types. For example, humans possess incisors for cutting, pointed canines for tearing, and flat molars for grinding. This is a clear compromise between the sharp, scissor-like teeth of a carnivore and the broad, flat molars of an herbivore.
Digestive Tract: The length of an omnivore's intestinal tract falls somewhere between that of an herbivore and a carnivore. Herbivores have long, complex digestive tracts to break down tough plant cellulose, while carnivores have shorter tracts suited for meat digestion. The omnivore's medium-length tract is a compromise for processing both food types.
Stomach Acidity: Omnivores have a moderately acidic stomach, stronger than a herbivore's but not as potent as a carnivore's. This helps in breaking down both plant and animal matter while also providing protection against pathogens that can be found in meat.
Opportunistic Feeding: Many omnivores are also opportunistic feeders and scavengers, meaning they will consume a wide array of food sources depending on what is available. This includes roots, nuts, insects, and carrion, which enhances their survivability in various environments.

Omnivore vs. Specialist: A Comparison


Feature	Omnivore	Carnivore	Herbivore
Dietary Sources	Both plants and animals	Primarily animal meat	Primarily plants
Dental Adaptations	Mixed dentition (incisors, canines, molars)	Sharp canines, sharp molars for shearing	Broad, flat molars for grinding plants
Digestive System	Moderately acidic stomach; medium-length intestinal tract	Highly acidic stomach; shorter intestinal tract	Less acidic stomach; long intestinal tract
Energy Acquisition	Can acquire energy from diverse sources	Depends on hunting or scavenging other animals	Depends on digesting large amounts of plant matter
Survival Advantage	Highly adaptable to changing food availability	Efficient at hunting and meat digestion	Efficient at breaking down tough plant fibers
Examples	Humans, bears, pigs, raccoons, chickens	Lions, tigers, wolves, eagles, sharks	Cows, deer, rabbits, squirrels, elephants

The Human Omnivorous Diet

While humans are physiologically omnivores, our dietary habits today can vary dramatically based on cultural, ethical, and health-related factors. Some individuals choose a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, consciously abstaining from meat and/or animal products. However, this is a behavioral choice that does not change the fact that the human body is physiologically capable of digesting both types of food. A balanced omnivorous diet for humans often includes a mix of fruits, vegetables, grains, and lean proteins, providing a wide range of essential nutrients. This flexibility is a key aspect of our survival and adaptability as a species.

Conclusion

In conclusion, people who eat both meat and plants are called omnivores, a term rooted in biology that describes their versatile dietary habits. Humans, along with a wide range of other animals from bears to chickens, are omnivores, possessing unique biological adaptations in their dental structure, digestive systems, and feeding behaviors that enable them to thrive on a mixed diet. This flexibility has offered a significant evolutionary advantage, allowing our species to adapt and survive in diverse environments across the globe. While personal dietary choices have evolved, our fundamental biological classification as omnivores remains a testament to our adaptable nature. For more information on the distinctions, adaptations, and evolutionary history of omnivores, carnivores, and herbivores, explore resources from reputable organizations like the National Geographic Society.

The Omnivorous Human

Humans possess a unique combination of physiological traits, including generalized teeth, moderately acidic stomach acid, and salivary amylase, which are hallmarks of an omnivorous species. While cultural factors influence individual diets, our biological makeup confirms our status as omnivores, a classification that has defined much of our evolutionary history. This dietary adaptability has allowed humans to thrive in a vast array of ecological niches, consuming a wide range of available food sources to meet nutritional needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, humans are naturally omnivores. Our anatomy, including our teeth designed for both tearing and grinding, and our digestive system, indicates that we evolved to eat a varied diet of both plant and animal matter.

The main difference is dietary. An omnivore eats both plants and animals, while a carnivore eats only animal meat. Their physical traits, like dental structure and digestive systems, are specifically adapted to their respective diets.

An omnivore consumes both plants and animals, whereas a herbivore eats only plants. Herbivores have highly specialized digestive systems for breaking down fibrous plant matter, which omnivores generally do not possess.

Examples of omnivores include a wide variety of animals such as bears, pigs, raccoons, chickens, crows, and even some species of fish like catfish.

No, an omnivorous diet is not inherently unhealthy for humans. When balanced, it can provide all necessary nutrients, though excessive consumption of certain foods like red and processed meats has been linked to health risks.

Yes, omnivores have a combination of different tooth types. They possess incisors and canines for cutting and tearing, like carnivores, and flat molars for grinding and crushing, like herbivores.

Being an omnivore is an advantage because it provides greater flexibility in a species' diet. This means they are more adaptable to changing environments and food availability, enhancing their chances of survival.