sentio

Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Italic *sentjō, from Proto-Indo-European *sent- (“to feel”). Cognate with Samogitian sintietė (“to think”), Old High German sinnan (“to go; desire”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈsen.ti.oː/, [ˈs̠ɛn̪t̪ioː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈsen.t͡si.o/, [ˈsɛnt̪͡s̪io]

Verb

sentiō (present infinitive sentīre, perfect active sēnsī, supine sēnsum); fourth conjugation

1. to feel, to sense, to perceive (with the senses)

   Synonyms: sapiō, percipiō, cōnspicor

   • 8 CE, Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.553:

     Hanc quoque Phoebus amat positāque in stīpite dextrā
     sentit adhūc trepidāre novō sub cortice pectus.

     But yet Phoebus loves her in this form and pressing his right hand
     he feels still the trembling heart under the bark.

2. to perceive, be aware of, to be sensible of, to notice mentally, to understand (by using one's senses)

   Synonyms: agnōscō, cognōscō, inveniō, cōnsciō, sapiō, sciō, nōscō, scīscō, intellegō, percipiō, discernō, tongeō, cernō, audiō

   Antonyms: ignōrō, nesciō

   • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico 4.14:

     Prius ad hostium castra pervēnit quam quid agerētur Germānī sentīre possent.

     He arrived at the camp of the enemy before the Germans could perceive what was going on.

3. to have an opinion, to think, to feel

   Synonyms: arbitror, opīnor, cōgitō, exīstimō, reor, putō, reputō, iūdicō, cēnseō

   • c. 100 CE – 110 CE, Tacitus, Histories 1.1:

     […] ubi sentīre quae velīs et quae sentiās dīcere licet.

     […] where to feel what you wish, and what you feel to say, is permitted.

4. to feel (an emotion)
5. to agree (typically followed by cum)
6. (Late Latin, Ecclesiastical Latin) (figuratively) to meet
   • 405 CE, Jerome, Vulgate Proverbs.13.3:

     Quī custōdit ōs suum custōdit animam suam: quī autem incōnsīderātus est ad loquendum sentiet mala.

     He that keepeth his mouth, keepeth his soul: but he that hath no guard on his speech shall meet with evils. (Douay-Rheims trans., Challoner rev.: 1752 CE)

Conjugation

   Conjugation of sentiō (fourth conjugation)

indicative		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	sentiō	sentīs	sentit	sentīmus	sentītis	sentiunt
	imperfect	sentiēbam	sentiēbās	sentiēbat	sentiēbāmus	sentiēbātis	sentiēbant
	future	sentiam	sentiēs	sentiet	sentiēmus	sentiētis	sentient
	perfect	sēnsī	sēnsistī	sēnsit	sēnsimus	sēnsistis	sēnsērunt, sēnsēre
	pluperfect	sēnseram	sēnserās	sēnserat	sēnserāmus	sēnserātis	sēnserant
	future perfect	sēnserō	sēnseris	sēnserit	sēnserimus	sēnseritis	sēnserint
passive	present	sentior	sentīris, sentīre	sentītur	sentīmur	sentīminī	sentiuntur
	imperfect	sentiēbar	sentiēbāris, sentiēbāre	sentiēbātur	sentiēbāmur	sentiēbāminī	sentiēbantur
	future	sentiar	sentiēris, sentiēre	sentiētur	sentiēmur	sentiēminī	sentientur
	perfect	sēnsus + present active indicative of sum
	pluperfect	sēnsus + imperfect active indicative of sum
	future perfect	sēnsus + future active indicative of sum
subjunctive		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	sentiam	sentiās	sentiat	sentiāmus	sentiātis	sentiant
imperfect	sentīrem	sentīrēs	sentīret	sentīrēmus	sentīrētis	sentīrent
perfect	sēnserim	sēnserīs	sēnserit	sēnserīmus	sēnserītis	sēnserint
pluperfect	sēnsissem	sēnsissēs	sēnsisset	sēnsissēmus	sēnsissētis	sēnsissent
passive	present	sentiar	sentiāris, sentiāre	sentiātur	sentiāmur	sentiāminī	sentiantur
imperfect	sentīrer	sentīrēris, sentīrēre	sentīrētur	sentīrēmur	sentīrēminī	sentīrentur
perfect	sēnsus + present active subjunctive of sum
pluperfect	sēnsus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum
imperative		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
active	present	—	sentī	—	—	sentīte	—
	future	—	sentītō	sentītō	—	sentītōte	sentiuntō
passive	present	—	sentīre	—	—	sentīminī	—
	future	—	sentītor	sentītor	—	—	sentiuntor
non-finite forms		active			passive
		present	perfect	future	present	perfect	future
infinitives		sentīre	sēnsisse	sēnsūrum esse	sentīrī	sēnsum esse	sēnsum īrī
participles		sentiēns	—	sēnsūrus	—	sēnsus	sentiendus, sentiundus
verbal nouns		gerund				supine
		genitive	dative	accusative	ablative	accusative	ablative
		sentiendī	sentiendō	sentiendum	sentiendō	sēnsum	sēnsū

Derived terms

• assentior
• cōnsentiō
• dissentiō
• persentiō
• praesentiō
• prōsentiō
• sēnsibilis
• sēnsim
• sēnsōrium
• sēnsus
• sententia
• sentiēns
• sentificō
• sentimentum
• sentiscō
• subsentiō

 

Related terms

• sēnsa
• sēnsātiō
• sēnsātus
• sēnsibiliter
• sēnsifer
• sēnsificō
• sēnsificus
• sēnsilis
• sēnsuālis
• sēnsuālitās

 

Descendants

Descendants

• Eastern Romance:
  • Aromanian: simtu, sãmtu, simtsiri
  • Romanian: simți, simțire
• Franco-Provençal: sentir, sientre
• Old French: sentir
  • French: sentir
  • → English: scent
• Italo-Dalmatian:
  • Dalmatian: senter
  • Italian: sentire
  • Neapolitan: sentire
  • Sicilian: sèntiri
• Old Occitan:
  • Catalan: sentir
  • Occitan: sentir
• Rhaeto-Romance:
  • Friulian: sintî
  • Romansch: sentir, santir, santeir
• Sardinian: sentire, sentiri
• Venetan: sentir
• West Iberian:
  • Old Leonese:
    • Asturian: sentir
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: sentir
    • Galician: sentir
    • Portuguese: sentir
  • Old Spanish:
    • Ladino: sintir
    • Spanish: sentir, sensar
• → Proto-Brythonic: *sɨnhɨd
  • Middle Welsh: synnyeit
    • Welsh: synio
• → Esperanto: senti

References

• “sentio”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “sentio”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• sentio in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• sentio in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • to hold the same views: idem sentire (opp. dissentire ab aliquo)
    
  • give me your opinion: dic quid sentias
    
  • to agree with a person: consentire, idem sentire cum aliquo
    
  • to think one thing, say another; to conceal one's opinions: aliter sentire ac loqui (aliud sentire, aliud loqui)
    
  • to have the good of the state at heart: bene, optime sentire de re publica
    
  • to have the good of the state at heart: omnia de re publica praeclara atque egregia sentire
    
  • to have the same political opinions: idem de re publica sentire
    
  • to foster revolutionary projects: contra rem publicam sentire
    
  • I will give you my true opinion: dicam quod sentio
    
  • (ambiguous) to come within the sphere of the senses: sub sensum or sub oculos, sub aspectum cadere
    
  • (ambiguous) to be a man of taste: sensum, iudicium habere
    
  • (ambiguous) to express oneself in popular language: ad vulgarem sensum or ad communem opinionem orationem accommodare (Off. 2. 10. 35)
    
  • (ambiguous) to be quite insensible of all feelings to humanity: omnem humanitatis sensum amisisse
    
• De Vaan, Michiel (2008) Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 554