sensation
Americannoun
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sensations
plural
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the operation or function of the senses; perception or awareness of stimuli through the senses.
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a mental condition or physical feeling resulting from stimulation of a sense organ or from internal bodily change, as cold or pain.
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Physiology. the faculty of perception of stimuli.
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a general feeling not directly attributable to any given stimulus, as discomfort, anxiety, or doubt.
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a mental feeling, especially a state of excited feeling.
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a state of excited feeling or interest caused among a number of persons or throughout a community, as by some rumor or occurrence.
- Synonyms:
- perturbation, commotion, agitation, animation, stimulation, excitement
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a cause of such feeling or interest.
The new Brazilian movie was the sensation of the film festival.
noun
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the power of perceiving through the senses
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a physical condition or experience resulting from the stimulation of one of the sense organs
a sensation of warmth
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a general feeling or awareness
a sensation of fear
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a state of widespread public excitement
his announcement caused a sensation
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anything that causes such a state
your speech was a sensation
Synonym Usage
See sense.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sensation
First recorded in 1605–15; from Medieval Latin sēnsātiōn- (stem of sēnsātiō ), equivalent to Late Latin sēnsāt(us) sensate + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
A sensation is a type of feeling, picked up by one of the five senses. Peppercorns will give you the sensation of a million tiny pinpricks on your tongue. A sensation is something from your senses. If you lose sensation in your feet, they are numb and it's time for you to get up and move around to restore blood flow. You can call something a sensation if it is wonderful and astonishing. Your parents will tell you that you were a sensation in the school play. Everyone will want to go see the special-effects movie that critics are calling a worldwide sensation.
Vocabulary lists containing sensation
Wonder Woman's Superpower Words
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Common Senses: Sent, Sens ("Feel")
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The Cay
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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.
See Examples For:
Excellent, if your tastes trend toward carpet tiles, hospital lighting, and the trapped-animal sensation of entering a room with no exit.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
His meteoric rise from a relative political unknown to the winner of last year’s mayoral race turned him into an international sensation, Polanco said, but his résumé was thin before taking office.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Yet by 2007 he was enough of a sensation that major news agencies in the U.S.,
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
American football star Travis Kelce described on Wednesday his secretive early July wedding to pop sensation Taylor Swift as "the best night of my life."
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
Before the end of June 1850, the Fox sisters had become New York’s latest must-see sensation.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
What used to be thought of as the attendant physical sensations of life—occasional fast heart beat, quick breath, shakiness when something goes wrong—is now some kind of clinical condition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
“I have not been able to replicate the feeling or the joy, sensations, adrenaline that gymnastics or competing brings,” Ohashi said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
As Maxine, an American director who’s traveled to Paris to complete a short film that will play before a high-concept fashion show in the coming days, Jolie elegantly moves between these two sensations.
From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026
Other users reported temperature-related symptoms such as chills, feeling cold, hot flashes, and fever-like sensations.
From Science Daily ● May 24, 2026
Gradually, the intensity of his sensations subsided and he was aware of the room.
From "Native Son" by Richard Wright
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.
