sanity
Americannoun
-
the state of being sane; soundness of mind.
-
soundness of judgment.
- Synonyms:
- reasonableness, sensibleness, rationality, reason
noun
-
the state of being sane
-
good sense or soundness of judgment
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sanity
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English sanite, from Latin sānitās; equivalent to sane + -ity
Explanation
Sanity is the opposite of insanity. When you have sanity, you're mentally healthy and not acting crazy. Sanity is a word for having a healthy state of mind — people with sanity don't have any loose marbles. Outside of mental hospitals, people often use this word in an exaggerated way when they've had a stressful, difficult day, shouting "I'm losing my sanity!" But if you actually lost your sanity, you'd need some serious medical attention. Besides, it usually takes more than one bad day to push someone over the edge.
Vocabulary lists containing sanity
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
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Schooled
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A Lesson Before Dying
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Economist Renuka Sane believes the right pricing structure could finally restore "commercial sanity", external to India's digital payment rails, allowing the market to price risk, fund critical infrastructure and build a more resilient payments ecosystem.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Neill said that, in filming “Possession,” he “only just escaped with his sanity barely intact.”
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
The psychological damage from the labor camp coupled with the oppression of the Communist regime infiltrated the house, where her mother’s constant cleaning and other drudgery was a way of maintaining sanity and order.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
Is this the best way to handle the situation ethically while preserving our sanity, or are there better options?
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 29, 2026
And then I met Gretchen and so to sanity; I could speak to nobody else, no human, and so I spoke to Gretchen.
From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
