sensory

[ sen-suh-ree ]

adjective

1. of or relating to the senses or sensation.
2. Physiology. noting a structure for conveying an impulse that results or tends to result in sensation, as a nerve.

sensory

/ ˈsɛnsərɪ; sɛnˈsɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the senses or the power of sensation
2. of or relating to those processes and structures within an organism that receive stimuli from the environment and convey them to the brain

sensory

/ sĕn′sə-rē /

1. Involving the sense organs or the nerves that relay messages from them.
2. Compare motor

Other Words From

• inter·senso·ry adjective
• multi·senso·ry adjective
• nonsen·sori·al adjective
• non·senso·ry adjective
• un·senso·ry adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of sensory¹

First recorded in 1620–30; sense + -ory ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of sensory¹

C18: from Latin sensōrius, from sentīre to feel

Example Sentences

It is one of our sensory organs in which we feel something that we would not otherwise understand properly.

From Nautilus

It’s nestled on specific sensory hairs that extend from the insect’s antennae.

From Science News For Students

The Halo band captures a wide range of sensory data, including the wearer’s heart rate, skin temperature, movements, amount of sleep, and tone of voice.

From Fortune

The empiricist’s dream is to acquire a rich understanding of the world from sensory data, but GPT-3 never does that, even with half a terabyte of input data.

From MIT Technology Review

Kang and his colleagues identified the protein that detects 4VA, nestled on specific sensory hairs that extend from the antennae.

From Science News

Nothing captures the exuberance and sensory experience of Havana quite like this.

From The Daily Beast

The “sensory” part of sensory gardens, that is, the integrated sensory experience of nature, seems to provide the best benefits.

From The Daily Beast

“Our sensory systems seek out intact sensory experiences,” says Wagenfeld.

From The Daily Beast

Swinging high in the air, squeezing into a nook, or rolling down a hill might provide these sorts of sensory input.

From The Daily Beast

“The painting is lush and triggers a sensory overload,” Harding said.

From The Daily Beast

On the tibia of the first pair of legs are two long special sensory hairs set in little pits.

From Project Gutenberg

Passion moves the poet to intensity, which is attained by selection of those sensory images which are significant.

From Project Gutenberg

These papill contain organs known as taste buds, the sensory endings of which determine the taste of substances.

From Project Gutenberg

In addition to these sensory powers the animal possesses motor faculties.

From Project Gutenberg

By primary, sensory experience is meant our immediate, direct knowledge of any aspect of the world.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• audiovisual
• auditory
• aural
• neural
• neurological
• olfactory
• sensual
• sonic
• tactile
• visual