sentiment

[ sen-tuh-muh nt ]

/ ˈsɛn tə mənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sentiment ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an attitude toward something; regard; opinion.

a mental feeling; emotion: a sentiment of pity.

refined or tender emotion; manifestation of the higher or more refined feelings.

exhibition or manifestation of feeling or sensibility, or appeal to the tender emotions, in literature, art, or music.

a thought influenced by or proceeding from feeling or emotion.

the thought or feeling intended to be conveyed by words, acts, or gestures as distinguished from the words, acts, or gestures themselves.

Nearby words

sentential function, sententious, senti, sentience, sentient, sentiment, sentimental, sentimental value, sentimentalism, sentimentalist, sentimentality

Origin of sentiment

1325–75; < Medieval Latin sentīmentum, equivalent to Latin sentī(re) to feel + -mentum -ment; replacing Middle English sentement < Old French < Medieval Latin, as above

Related forms

sen·ti·ment·less, adjective

Can be confused

sentiment sentimentality (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonym study

1. See opinion. 2. See feeling. 3. Sentiment, sentimentality are terms for sensitiveness to emotional feelings. Sentiment is a sincere and refined sensibility, a tendency to be influenced by emotion rather than reason or fact: to appeal to sentiment. Sentimentality implies affected, excessive, sometimes mawkish sentiment: weak sentimentality.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sentiments

But none of them are so out of step with sentiments common among many New Yorkers.
Eric Garner Protesters Have a Direct Line to City Hall|Jacob Siegel|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I shared the sentiments of the Fatah sentry who allowed me inside the walls of the Muqata in Ramallah.
I Traveled 6,000 Miles and a Lifetime to See the Pride Flag Fly at the U.S. Embassy in Israel|Jim Neal|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The two sentiments usually come bundled together, and cut both ways.
100 Years of Wrigley Field: Are the Chicago Cubs Horrible Because of the Ballpark?|Luke Epplin|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
These sentiments were expressed personally to Georgian Prime Minister Garibashvili during his trip to Washington, D.C. last month.
Obama Tells Georgia to Forget About NATO After Encouraging It to Join|Will Cathcart|March 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But despite the PR-friendly veneer, the sentiments are difficult to dispute.
Why Do You Hate Justin Bieber?|Rawiya Kameir|December 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
However, we are already sufficiently acquainted with his sentiments in these respects.
The Life of Philip Melanchthon|Karl Friedrich Ledderhose
On the contrary, His Imperial Majesty appeals to their sentiments of justice, and to the consciousness of their own dignity.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell
"Necessarily, no doubt," Lena said, with an idea of easing her sister's stupefaction by a sarcasm foreign to her sentiments.
Vittoria, Complete|George Meredith
His ambition and his simple personal successes had formerly distracted him from the sentiments which madame de Rnal had inspired.
The Red and the Black|Stendhal
His sentiments apparently fell no further towards his heart than that; his brain belonged to the bridge of his nose.
The Entailed Hat|George Alfred Townsend

British Dictionary definitions for sentiments

sentiment

/ (ˈsɛntɪmənt) /

noun

susceptibility to tender, delicate, or romantic emotionshe has too much sentiment to be successful

(often plural) a thought, opinion, or attitude

exaggerated, overindulged, or mawkish feeling or emotion

an expression of response to deep feeling, esp in art or literature

a feeling, emotion, or awarenessa sentiment of pity

a mental attitude modified or determined by feelingthere is a strong revolutionary sentiment in his country

a feeling conveyed, or intended to be conveyed, in words

Word Origin for sentiment

C17: from Medieval Latin sentīmentum, from Latin 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