Peer into the etymological cave of troglodyte and you’ll find a trōglē. But don't be afraid. Trōglē may sound like a scary cave-dwelling ogre, but it's actually just a perfectly unintimidating Greek root that means "hole" or "cave." Is troglodyte the only English word to have descended from trōglē? Not exactly. Troglodyte and its related adjective troglodytic (meaning "of, related to, or being a troglodyte") are the only trōglē offspring that are widely used in general English contexts, but another trōglē progeny, the prefix troglo-, meaning "cave-dwelling," is used in scientific contexts to form words like troglobiont ("an animal living in or restricted to caves").
a political troglodyte who didn't have a grasp of the concerns of young voters
Recent Examples on the WebSo far this year, the carlike Toyota Highlander is outselling its troglodyte sibling, the 4Runner, at a rate of about two to one. Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 16 Dec. 2021 Every troglodyte pushing baby-step solutions to a Biblical flood. Dennard Dayle, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2021 Mark is a low-key troglodyte; Paula is outspokenly progressive. Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 8 Aug. 2021 Now Gove’s remark became the source of the ashen taste in the mouths of Remoaner metropolitan elites bewailing how provincial troglodytes, geriatrics, and Little Englanders had dashed their rationalist, internationalist dreams. Kyle Smith, National Review, 8 Apr. 2020 Writing critics off as a gang of right-wing troglodytes, the standard tactic of many of Pope Francis’s defenders, is not just derisive and condescending. Francis X. Maier, National Review, 20 Mar. 2020 Pan troglodytes, to use the scientific name for chimps, is one of our closest evolutionary ancestors. Susan Pinker, WSJ, 25 Jan. 2020 Their species, Pan troglodytes, is classified endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. David Quammen, National Geographic, 8 Nov. 2019 Set foot inside the amazing cave dwellings known as troglodyte homes—charming houses built in and around cliff-side caverns.National Geographic, 17 June 2019 See More
Word History
Etymology
Latin troglodytae, plural, from Greek trōglodytai, from trōglē hole, cave (akin to Greek trōgein to gnaw, Armenian aracem I lead to pasture, graze) + dyein to enter