sense

[ sens ]

/ sɛns /

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See synonyms for: sense / sensed / senses / sensing on Thesaurus.com

noun

any of the faculties, as sight, hearing, smell, taste, or touch, by which humans and animals perceive stimuli originating from outside or inside the body: My sense of smell tells me that dinner is ready.

these faculties collectively.

their operation or function; sensation.

a feeling or perception produced through the organs of touch, taste, etc., or resulting from a particular condition of some part of the body: to have a sense of cold.

a faculty or function of the mind analogous to sensation: the moral sense.

any special capacity for perception, estimation, appreciation, etc.: a sense of humor.

Usually senses . clear and sound mental faculties; sanity: Have you taken leave of your senses?

a more or less vague perception or impression: a sense of security.

a mental discernment, realization, or recognition; acuteness: a just sense of the worth of a thing.

the recognition of something as incumbent or fitting: a sense of duty.

sound practical intelligence: He has no sense.

something that is sensible or reasonable: Try to talk sense instead of shouting.

the meaning or gist of something: You missed the sense of his statement.

the value or worth of something; merit: There's no sense in worrying about the past.

the meaning of a word or phrase in a specific context, especially as isolated in a dictionary or glossary; the semantic element in a word or group of words.

an opinion or judgment formed or held, especially by an assemblage or body of persons: the sense of a meeting.

Genetics. a DNA sequence that is capable of coding for an amino acid (distinguished from nonsense).

Mathematics. one of two opposite directions in which a vector may point.

verb (used with object), sensed, sens·ing.

to perceive (something) by the senses; become aware of.

to grasp the meaning of; understand.

(of certain mechanical devices) to detect physical phenomena, as light, temperature, radioactivity, etc., mechanically, electrically, or photoelectrically.

Computers. to read (punched holes, tape, data, etc.) mechanically, electrically, or photoelectrically.

OTHER WORDS FOR sense

5 awareness, apprehension.

7 rationality.

9 estimation.

13 signification, import, denotation, connotation, interpretation.

16 feeling, sentiment.

19 discern, appreciate, recognize.

See synonyms for sense on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “ITS” VS. “IT’S”!

Apostrophes can be tricky; prove you know the difference between "it’s" and "its" in this crafty quiz!

Question 1 of 8

On the farm, the feed for chicks is significantly different from the roosters’; ______ not even comparable.

it's

its

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about sense

come to one's senses, to regain one's good judgment or realistic point of view; become reasonable.

in a sense, according to one explanation or view; to a certain extent: In a sense it may have been the only possible solution.

make sense, to be reasonable or comprehensible: His attitude doesn't make sense.

Origin of sense

First recorded in 1350–1400; (noun) Middle English, from Middle French sens, from Latin sēnsus “sensation, feeling, understanding,” equivalent to sent(īre) “to feel” + -sus, a variant of -tus, suffix of verbal action; (verb) derivative of the noun

synonym study for sense

4. Sense, sensation refer to consciousness of stimulus or of a perception as pleasant or unpleasant. A sense is an awareness or recognition of something; the stimulus may be subjective and the entire process may be mental or intellectual: a sense of failure. A sensation is an impression derived from an objective (external) stimulus through any of the sense organs: a sensation of heat. It is also a general, indefinite physical or emotional feeling: a sensation of weariness. 13. See meaning.

OTHER WORDS FROM sense

half-sensed, adjectiveun·sensed, adjectiveun·sens·ing, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sense

cents, scents, sense

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use sense in a sentence

To make sense of the ending of Trust Exercise, stop thinking of the characters as individuals.
The mind-boggling end of Susan Choi’s Trust Exercise, explained|Constance Grady|November 20, 2020|Vox
My 2009 brain never was able to make sense of the architecture until last week, when I was able to see the pillars and foundations that hold the whole region together.
‘Demon’s Souls’ review: The ideal PlayStation 5 launch game|Gene Park|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
He didn’t tell her about my journalism, or my sense of humor or the fact I was from a teeny tiny town.
What ‘The Crown’ got right in portraying Princess Diana’s bulimia: It let her voice be heard|Amanda Long|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
They suggest motion and produce a sense of distance between background and foreground.
In the galleries: The Washington colorists and the CIA|Mark Jenkins|November 20, 2020|Washington Post

I discovered their desire, like mine, to help these boys achieve success … the camaraderie and sense of family and friendship across all boundaries … and the incredible focus of power that happened when everyone focused on the same goal.
For fans of BTS, the only thing better than the group is each other|Marian Liu|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
Sensing his opportunity, Joey Biden pounced: “I walked up behind him and smashed his head next to the counter.”
Joe Biden: ‘I’ll Kill Your Son’|Olivia Nuzzi|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
My two elder brothers, overhearing the story, and I think sensing something exciting, wanted to come along, too.
Knocking on Heaven's Door: True Stories of Unexplained, Uncanny Experiences at the Hour of Death|Patricia Pearson|August 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Crumbs, sensing an opportunity, went public in early 2011, and set about expanding.
The Cupcake Boom’s Sugar High Finally Crashes|Daniel Gross|July 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Essentially, in a package the size of a sugar cube, you can have the sensing components necessary.
Augmented Reality System Goes From Military to Market|Rose Eveleth|May 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Here, more than anywhere else, Sensing Spaces awakens our senses.
The Royal Academy Wants You to Finish This Artwork|Chloë Ashby|January 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Landy, too, sensing the importance of coming events, improved his appearance by buttoning up his shirt-front.
David Lannarck, Midget|George S. Harney
The questioner, sensing this alteration in the other, made his queries all the quicker and more peremptory.
The Winning Clue|James Hay, Jr.
They had hesitated to break in upon my solitude, but now, sensing that I have protection, they speak out.
My Wonderful Visit|Charlie Chaplin
"I guess nobody ever is happy so very much," Charlie continued, sensing that Peter was stumped for the moment.
The Boy Grew Older|Heywood Broun
If sensation be related868 to the sense-object, why do they not equally relate "sensing" (feeling) to the sense-object?
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 3|Plotinos (Plotinus)

British Dictionary definitions for sense

sense

/ (sɛns) /

noun

any of the faculties by which the mind receives information about the external world or about the state of the body. In addition to the five traditional faculties of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell, the term includes the means by which bodily position, temperature, pain, balance, etc, are perceived

such faculties collectively; the ability to perceive

a feeling perceived through one of the sensesa sense of warmth

a mental perception or awarenessa sense of happiness

moral discernment; understandinga sense of right and wrong

(sometimes plural) sound practical judgment or intelligencehe is a man without any sense

reason or purposewhat is the sense of going out in the rain?

substance or gist; meaningwhat is the sense of this proverb?

specific meaning; definitionin what sense are you using the word?

an opinion or consensus

maths one of two opposite directions measured on a directed line; the sign as contrasted with the magnitude of a vector

logic linguistics

the import of an expression as contrasted with its referent. Thus the morning star and the evening star have the same reference, Venus, but different senses
the property of an expression by virtue of which its referent is determined
that which one grasps in understanding an expression

make sense to be reasonable or understandable

take leave of one's senses See leave 2 (def. 8)

verb (tr)

to perceive through one or more of the senses

to apprehend or detect without or in advance of the evidence of the senses

to understand

computing

to test or locate the position of (a part of computer hardware)
to read (data)

Word Origin for sense

C14: from Latin sēnsus, from sentīre to feel

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medical definitions for sense

sense

[ sĕns ]

Any of the faculties by which stimuli from outside or inside the body are received and felt, as the faculties of hearing, sight, smell, touch, taste, and equilibrium.

A perception or feeling that is produced by a stimulus; sensation, as of hunger.

To become aware of; perceive.

Other Idioms and Phrases with sense

sense

see come to one's senses; horse sense; in a sense; lull into (a false sense of security); make sense; sixth sense; take leave of (one's senses); talk sense.

sense

OTHER WORDS FOR sense

Idioms about sense

Origin of sense

synonym study for sense

OTHER WORDS FROM sense

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sense

Words related to sense

How to use sense in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sense

Word Origin for sense

Medical definitions for sense

Other Idioms and Phrases with sense