sentience
noun
sen·tience
ˈsen(t)-sh(ē-)ən(t)s 
ˈsen-tē-ən(t)s
1
: a sentient quality or state
2
: feeling or sensation as distinguished from perception and thought
Examples of sentience in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
So there are a massive number of worlds out there where life could have evolved and attained sentience and spaceflight capabilities.
—
Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2026
In Hungarian director Ildikó Enyedi’s meditative drama, three people in three different eras explore the sentience of flora, each timeline connecting to the others through a gingko tree that’s been growing since 1832 in the botanical gardens adjacent to Marburg University in Germany.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 May 2026
The 78-year-old Gore, who served as vice president with President Clinton from 1993 to 2001 and is now chairman of Generation Investment Management, seemed to align himself with some of the youngest AI users in this take on silicon sentience.
—Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 9 Apr. 2026
When a future model writes something on the scale of War and Peace or The Lord of the Rings, denying it sentience will grow harder.
—Shai Tubali, Big Think, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sentience
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Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2026
In Hungarian director Ildikó Enyedi’s meditative drama, three people in three different eras explore the sentience of flora, each timeline connecting to the others through a gingko tree that’s been growing since 1832 in the botanical gardens adjacent to Marburg University in Germany.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 May 2026
The 78-year-old Gore, who served as vice president with President Clinton from 1993 to 2001 and is now chairman of Generation Investment Management, seemed to align himself with some of the youngest AI users in this take on silicon sentience.
—Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 9 Apr. 2026
When a future model writes something on the scale of War and Peace or The Lord of the Rings, denying it sentience will grow harder.
—Shai Tubali, Big Think, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sentience
Cite this Entry
“Sentience.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sentience. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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