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
The prospect of machine sentience hangs over all of this like a cloud.
—
Dan Rockmore, New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2025
But more-typical tests rely on experiments that look for behaviour suggesting sentience — the ability to have an immediate experience of emotions and sensations, including pain.
—Mariana Lenharo & Nature Magazine, Scientific American, 6 Aug. 2025
My own personal view is that sentience has tremendous importance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 23 Jan. 2025
First, do not allow this possibility to spur you to assume that AI must be sentient and would react based on a sense of sentience.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sentience
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Dan Rockmore, New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2025
But more-typical tests rely on experiments that look for behaviour suggesting sentience — the ability to have an immediate experience of emotions and sensations, including pain.
—Mariana Lenharo & Nature Magazine, Scientific American, 6 Aug. 2025
My own personal view is that sentience has tremendous importance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 23 Jan. 2025
First, do not allow this possibility to spur you to assume that AI must be sentient and would react based on a sense of sentience.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sentience
Cite this Entry
“Sentience.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sentience. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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