interoceptive

American  

[in-tuh-roh-sep-tiv] / ˌɪn tə roʊˈsɛp tɪv /

adjective

Physiology.

1. pertaining to interoceptors, the stimuli acting upon them, or the nerve impulses initiated by them.

---

Etymology

Origin of interoceptive

First recorded in 1905–10; interocept(or) + -ive

Example Sentences

Conscious feelings are one of its techniques, emerging “deep in the subcortical regions” where the brain’s interoceptive neurons receive messages from the body and Cartesian duality dissolves.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 15, 2026

Because interoceptive signals originate deep within the body and are often processed unconsciously, scientists often describe this system as our "hidden sixth sense."

From Science Daily • Oct. 25, 2025

This area of the brainstem receives interoceptive input, or signals from the body about its internal state, like hunger, pain and fullness.

From Salon • Feb. 6, 2025

Fundamental questions remain about how interoceptive experiences arise—and for whom.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 10, 2021

Zentner and Eerola put it this way: “what may have generated positive affect in our infants is the interoceptive feedback from moving in time with rhythmic pulses.”

From Scientific American • Jan. 17, 2013