Meaning of sense in English

Table of contents
  1. Pronunciation
  2. Verb
    1. Definitions
  3. Noun
    1. Etymology
    2. Definitions

  1. Pronunciation

    /sɛns/

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    UK accent

  1. Verb

    sense

    Definitions

    1. perceive by a physical sensation, e.g., coming from the skin or muscles

    Examples

    • « He felt the wind »
    • « She felt an object brushing her arm »
    • « He felt his flesh crawl »
    • « She felt the heat when she got out of the car »

    Derived terms

  2. 2. detect some circumstance or entity automatically

    Examples

    • « This robot can sense the presence of people in the room »
    • « particle detectors sense ionization »

    Derived terms

  3. 3. become aware of not through the senses but instinctively

    Examples

    • « I sense his hostility »
  4. 4. comprehend

    Examples

    • « I sensed the real meaning of his letter »

    Derived terms

  5. Noun

    sense

    Etymology

    late Middle English (as a noun in the sense ‘meaning’): from Latin sensus‘faculty of feeling, thought, meaning’, from sentire‘feel’. The verb dates from the mid 16th century

    Definitions

    1. a general conscious awareness

    Examples

    • « a sense of security »
    • « a sense of happiness »
    • « a sense of danger »
    • « a sense of self »

    Derived terms

  6. 2. the meaning of a word or expression

    Examples

    • « the way in which a word or expression or situation can be interpreted »
    • « the dictionary gave several senses for the word »
    • « in the best sense charity is really a duty »
    • « the signifier is linked to the signified »
  7. 3. the faculty through which the external world is apprehended

    Examples

    • « in the dark he had to depend on touch and on his senses of smell and hearing »

    Derived terms

  8. 4. sound practical judgment

    Examples

    • « I can't see the sense in doing it now »
    • « he hasn't got the sense God gave little green apples »
    • « fortunately she had the good sense to run away »
  9. 5. a natural appreciation or ability

    Examples

    • « a keen musical sense »
    • « a good sense of timing »

Famous quotes

  • « We believe. We believe in our destiny as a nation. We believe we have been called to do good, to spread the blessings of liberty and encourage the sense of trust upon which free societies depend. »
    Tony Snow
  • « I think there's a vague sense out there that movies are becoming more and more unreal. I know I've felt it. »
    Christopher Nolan
  • « He who wants to persuade should put his trust not in the right argument, but in the right word. The power of sound has always been greater than the power of sense. »
    Joseph Conrad
  • « I have met with some of them - very honest fellows, who, with all their stupidity, had a kind of intelligence and an upright good sense, which cannot be the characteristics of fools. »
    Giacomo Casanova
  • « If one tends to be a humorous person and you have a sense of humor the rest of your life then you can certainly lighten the load, I think, by bringing that to your trials and tribulations. It's easy to have a sense of humor when everything is going well. »
    Alan Thicke

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