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definitions

sentiment

[sen-tuh-muh nt]
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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.

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RELATED WORDS

idea, thought, attitude, bias, passion, position, opinion, feeling, tendency, view, mind, penchant, eye, propensity, persuasion, inclination, slant, partiality, disposition, affect

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 formssen·ti·ment·less, adjective
Can be confusedsentiment 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

Contemporary Examples of sentiments

Historical Examples of sentiments

British Dictionary definitions for sentiments

sentiment

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
Word Origin and History for sentiments

sentiment

n.

late 14c., sentement, "personal experience, one's own feeling," from Old French sentement (12c.), from Medieval Latin sentimentum "feeling, affection, opinion," from Latin sentire "to feel" (see sense (n.)).

Meaning "what one feels about something" (1630s) and modern spelling seem to be a re-introduction from French (where it was spelled sentiment by 17c.). A vogue word mid-18c. with wide application, commonly "a thought colored by or proceeding from emotion" (1762), especially as expressed in literature or art. The 17c. sense is preserved in phrases such as my sentiments exactly.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper