Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Sensual |
SensualAdjective1. Of the appetites and passions of the body; "animal instincts"; "carnal knowledge"; "fleshly desire"; "a sensual delight in eating"; "music is the only sensual pleasure without vice". 2. Sexually exciting or gratifying; "sensual excesses"; "a sultry look"; "a sultry dance". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "sensual" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1258. (references) |
Etymology: Sensual \Sen"su*al\, adjective. [Latin expression sensualis, from sensus sense: compare to the French expression sensuel.]. (references) |
Synonyms: SensualSynonyms: animal(a) (adj), carnal (adj), fleshly (adj), sultry (adj). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Intemperance | Adjective: intemperate,inabstinent; sensual, self-indulgent; voluptuous, luxurious, licentious, wild, dissolute, rakish, fast, debauched. |
Pain | Refreshing; comfortable; cordial; genial; glad, gladsome; sweet, delectable, nice, dainty; delicate, delicious; dulcet; luscious; palatable; luxurious, voluptuous; sensual. |
Physical Pleasure | Noun: pleasure; physical pleasure, sensual pleasure, sensuous pleasure; bodily enjoyment, animal gratification, hedonism, sensuality; luxuriousness. Adjective: dissipation, round of pleasure, gusto, creature comforts, comfort, ease; pillow. (support); luxury, lap of luxury; purple and fine linen; bed of downs, bed of roses; velvet, clover; cup of Circe. (intemperance). |
Adjective: enjoying. Verb: luxurious, voluptuous, sensual, comfortable, cosy, snug, in comfort, at ease. | |
Sexuality | Adjective: sexy, erotic, sexual, carnal, sensual. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Sensual |
| English words defined with "sensual": animal ♦ carnal ♦ dissipation, dissolution ♦ Epithumetical ♦ fleshly ♦ hedonist ♦ Lapling, licentiousness ♦ pleasure seeker, profligacy, puritan ♦ saturnine, sensualism, Sensualistic, sensuality, sensually, sensualness, sultrily ♦ To walk after the flesh ♦ Weasiness, Weasy. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "sensual": Corflambo, Cupid's Golden Arrow ♦ Puddings. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "sensual": Weasiness. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Sensual" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses. Albanian (carnal, fleshly, sensual, sensuous), Portuguese (amative, bestial, boarish, brutish, carnal, concupiscent, epicurean, fleshly, goatish, high-sounding, incontinent, lascivious, lewd, libidinous, lubricous, lustful, sensual, sensuous, sexy, unreserved, voluptuous, wanton), Spanish (sensual, sensuous). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | A magnificent, opulent, tremendous, stupendous, gargantuan, bedazzlement, a sensual ravishment (Moulin Rouge!; writing credit: Baz Luhrmann; Craig Pearce) Satan is ever ready to seduce us with sensual delights (The Devils; writing credit: Aldous Huxley; Ken Russell) We choose this name for two reasons: it has five letters and in French, rouge means red, a color that is feminine and sensual. (Popstars: Brasil; writing credit: David Meinstein) Swim the warm waters of sins of the flesh - erotic nightmares beyond any measure, and sensual daydreams to treasure forever (The Rocky Horror Picture Show; writing credit: Richard O'Brien; Jim Sharman) | |
Lyrics | In the night the most sensual voice (Mephisto and Kevin; performing artist: Primus) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Sensual Spirits (1995) Vol III: 10 Secrets for Greater Sensual Pleasure Making Love Series (1995) 101 Sensual Ways of Making Love (1993) Ultimate Sensual Massage (1991) Sensual Escape (1988) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
| ||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | The Condom: Sensible, Safe And Sensual. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |  | The Sensual dieter's guide to weight loss during sex. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Ann Landers | Sensual pleasures have the fleeting brilliance of a comet; a happy marriage has the tranquillity of a lovely sunset. |
Marcus T. Cicero | A sensual and intemperate youth translates into an old worn-out body. |
Sir Walter Scott | Sound, sound the clarion, fill the fife! To all the sensual world proclaim. One crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age without a name. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | They give up the world, cities, sensual enjoyments, pleasures, vanities, pride, interest |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
Dennis Miller | It's not sexual, it's sensual. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| "Sensual" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 99.14% of the time. "Sensual" is used about 347 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 99.14% | 344 | 15,433 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.86% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 347 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "sensual": sensual passion ♦ sensual pleasure. Additional references. | |
| Hypenated Usage | |
Ending with "sensual": anti-sensual, quasi-sensual. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "sensual"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | sensual (carnal, fleshly, sensuous). (various references) | |
Arabic | حسي (object lesson, receptive, sensational, sensitive, sensory, tangible, voluptuous), جسدي (bodily, carnal, corporal, corporeal, glandule, material, physical, somatic), شهواني (amorous, carnal, erotic, instinctive, lascivious, lewd, libidinous, lickerish, lush, lustful, luxurious, passionate, randy, salacious, satyr, sensualist, sportive, sultry, voluptuary, voluptuous, wanton, warm), داعر (bawdy, lascivious, lecherous, lewd, libidinous, light, mean, naughty, obscene, obscenity, pornographic, raffish, salacious, scarlet, wanton). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | сетивен (material, sensate, sensational, sense, sensible, sensorial, sensory, sensuous), сексуален (carnal, sex, sexual, sexy), сенсуален, сладострастен (erotic, lascivious, lustful, voluptuous), чувствен (amorous, fleshly, lush, material, sensuous, voluptuous), полов (carnal, copulative, genital, sex, sexual, venereal), плътски (animal, carnal, fleshly, material). (various references) | |
Czech | smyslný (carnal, earthly, Randy, sensuous, sultry, voluptuous, wanton). (various references) | |
Dutch | wellustig (sensuous, voluptuous), sensueel (sensuous). (various references) | |
Esperanto | sensama (sensuous). (various references) | |
Farsi | هوس ران , نفسانی (Carnal), خوش گذران (Jovial, Luxurious), جسمانی (Bodily, Carnal, Corporeal, Earthen, Material, Physical, Worldly), شهوانی (Brutal, Carnal, Lascivious, Lecherous, Lustful, Passionate, Random, Ruttish, Salacious, Voluptuous). (various references) | |
Finnish | aistillinen (erotic, sensuous). (various references) | |
French | sensuel, sensitif (sensory), charnel. (various references) | |
German | sinnlich (carnal, sensorial, sensory, sensuous, sensuously, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Greek | σαρκικόσ (carnal, fleshly), φιλήδονοσ (lickerish, sensualist, sensualistic, voluptuary, voluptuous), αισθησιακόσ (sensationalistic, sensuous, voluptuous), αισθησιακός. (various references) | |
Hebrew | תאות י (lascivious, lecherous, lewd, libidinous, lickerish, lustful, passionate, prurient, salacious, voluptuous), ע'ב י (lusty, salacious, sexual), חוש י (carnal, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Hungarian | érzéki (amatory, amorous, carnal, concupiscent, erotic, lecherous, libidinous, luscious, prurient, salacious, sensational, sensory, sensuous, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Indonesian | berhawa nafsu. (various references) | |
Italian | sensuale (fleshly, sensuous, voluptuary). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 肉感的 , 官能的 (sexy, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | にっか"てき, か"のうてき (sexy, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Manx | soyllaragh (self-indulgent, voluptuary, voluptuous), foalley (of flesh). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | ensualsay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | sensual (amative, bestial, boarish, brutish, carnal, concupiscent, epicurean, fleshly, goatish, high-sounding, incontinent, lascivious, lewd, libidinous, lubricous, lustful, sensuous, sexy, unreserved, voluptuous, wanton), sensitivo (sensitive, sensory), voluptuoso (high-sounding, lecherous, luscious, luxurious, voluptuous), libidinoso (concupiscent, goatish, high-sounding, lewd, libidinous, obscene, rammish, satyr, voluptuous), lúbrico (lewd, lubricous, lustful, prurient). (various references) | |
Romanian | senzualist (sensualist), senzual (amative, carnal, concupiscent, fleshly, fleshy, full-blooded, lecherous, lustful, luxurious, Randy, salacious, sensuous, voluptuous), voluptos (sensuous, voluptuous), material (cloth, copy, corporeal, earthly, economic, fabric, financial, mass, material, matter, palpable, physical, real, stuff, substantial, tissue), carnal (carnal, concupiscent), animalic (beastly, bestial, brutal, brutally, brute). (various references) | |
Russian | чувственный (carnal, libidinous, sensuous, sexy, voluptuous). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | senzualan, puten (carnal), čulan (pandemic). (various references) | |
Spanish | sensual (sensuous). (various references) | |
Swedish | sinnlig (carnal, fleshly, pertaining to sense, sensuous, voluptuous), sensuell (sensuous). (various references) | |
Turkish | zevk düşkünü (pleasure-seeking, sybarite, voluptuous), tensel, nefsine düşkün, hissi (emotional, sensational, sensuous, sentimental), duygusal (affective, emotional, emotive, feeling, sensational, sensuous, sentimental, soulful, susceptible, susceptive), bedensel (bodily, carnal, Corporal, corporeal, fleshly, gestic, material, organic, physical, somatic), şehvetli (concupiscent, fleshly, hot, lascivious, lustful, prurient, salacious, voluptuous), şehvete düşkün. (various references) | |
Turkmen | duяgur (impressionable, perceptive). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | сенсуалістичний, чутт"вий (sensational, sensuous, voluptuous), любострасний (aphrodisiac, concupiscent). (various references) | |
Vietnamese | ham khoái lạc. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | carnali, carnalia, carnalibus, carnalis. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | Jude Chapter 1, Verse 19 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | Outoi eisin oi apodiorizonteV yucikoi pneuma mh econteV |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Hii sunt qui segregant animales Spiritum non habentes |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | These ben, whiche departen hemsilf, beestli men, not hauynge spirit. |
| Renaissance English | 1526 | Tyndale | These are makers of sectes fleshlie havynge no sprete. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit. |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | These are they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit. |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | These are the men who make divisions, natural men, not having the Spirit. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Jude Chapter 1, Verse 19 |
| Cebuano | Mao kini sila ang nagahimog mga pagbahinbahin, mga tawong kalibutanon nga wala magabaton sa Espiritu. |
| Croatian | To su sijaèi razdora, sjetilnici koji nemaju Duha. |
| Danish | Disse ere de, som volde Splittelser, sjælelige, som ikke have Ånd. |
| Dutch | Dezen zijn het, die zichzelven afscheiden, natuurlijke mensen, den Geest niet hebbende. |
| Finnish | Nämä juuri saavat aikaan hajaannusta, he ovat sielullisia, henkeä heillä ei ole. |
| French | ce sont ceux qui provoquent des divisions, hommes sensuels, n`ayant pas l`esprit. |
| German | Diese sind es, die da Trennungen machen, Fleischliche, die da keinen Geist haben. |
| Haitian Creole | Se moun sa yo k'ap simen divizyon. Yo kite egzijans lachè dominen yo. Se pa Lespri Bondye a k'ap dirije lavi yo. |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | Mereka inilah orang-orang yang menimbulkan perpecahan. Mereka tidak dikuasai oleh Roh Allah, melainkan oleh keinginan-keinginan tabiat duniawi. |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | Maka mereka itulah yang membuat penceraian, yaitu orang yang menurut hawa nafsu dan yang tiada berisi Roh. |
| Italian | Tali sono quelli che provocano divisioni, gente materiale, privi dello Spirito. |
| Maori | Na enei nga titorehanga, he hunga hiahia hoki ki te kikokiko kahore nei i a ratou te Wairua. |
| Norwegian | Disse er de som skiller sig ut, naturlige mennesker, som ikke har ånd. |
| Portuguese | Estes são os que causam divisões; são sensuais, e não têm o Espírito. |
| Rumanian | Ei sknt aceia cari dau nawtere la dezbinqri, oameni supuwi poftelor firii, cari n`au Duhul. |
| Shuar | Nu yajauch shuar Atumín akantamenawai. Ju nunkanmayanak Páchiniak Yusa Wakanin takakainiatsui. |
| Spanish | Éstos son los que causan divisiones. Son sensuales y no tienen al Espíritu. |
| Swahili | Hao ndio watu wanaosababisha mafarakano, watu wanaotawaliwa na tamaa zao za kidunia, watu wasio na Roho wa Mungu. |
| Uma | Tauna to hewa toe-ramo to mpobabehi pogaaa' hi doo. Uma-ra nakuasai Inoha' Tomoroli', nakuasai konoa nono-ra moto-ra-wadi. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "sensual": sensualism, sensualisms, sensualist, sensualistic, sensualists, sensualities, sensuality, sensualization, sensualizations, sensualize, sensualized, sensualizes, sensualizing, sensually. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "sensual": consensual, nonconsensual. (additional references) | |
Words containing "sensual": consensually. (additional references) | |
| |
"Sensual" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Mensuel, Saenaua, sanquar, Sansodar, sekshual, seneshal, Sengul, sensal, sensel, sensoual, sensu, sensuakl, sensuall, sensuel, Sensuelle, sensuil, sentual, sentul, senual, Senzala, sesual, Setsuo, Sinisalo. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "sensual" (pronounced se"nkhuwul) |
| 5 | -kh u w u l | actual, spiritual, textual, mutual, perceptual. |
| 4 | -u w u l | individual, casual, heterosexual, homosexual, semiannual, unusual, usual, visual. |
| 3 | -w u l | bilingual, coequal, equal, monolingual, multilingual, sequel, tranquil, unequal. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
Direct Anagrams: unseals. | |
| Words within the letters "a-e-l-n-s-s-u" | |
-1 letter: anuses, unless, unseal, usneas. | |
-2 letters: elans, lanes, lases, leans, lunas, lunes, sales, sanes, sauls, seals, sensa, slues, ulans, ulnae, ulnas, usnea. | |
-3 letters: ales, anes, anus, elan, lane, lase, lass, lean, leas, lens, less, lues, luna, lune, ness, sale, sals, sane, sans, saul, seal, seas, sels, slue, sues, suns, ulan, ulna, uses. | |
-4 letters: ale, als. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-e-l-n-s-s-u" | |
+1 letter: inulases, scalenus, unlashes. | |
+2 letters: adultness, angeluses, annuluses, awfulness, dauntless, insulates, laundress, nucleases, purslanes, sensually, squalenes, subpanels, sultaness, unleashes, unsaddles, usualness. | |
+3 letters: artfulness, auslanders, casualness, consensual, consulates, encapsules, faultiness, granuloses, langoustes, languishes, lawfulness, manfulness, masculines, nauseously, nautiluses, peninsulas, resultants, sensualism, sensualist, sensuality, sensualize, slanderous, slanguages, spleuchans, subalterns, subleasing, sulfonates, sultanates, sunglasses, tantaluses, unassailed, underclass, universals, unpassable, unshackles, unstablest, urinalyses, usableness, vulcanises. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Photo Album 7. Quotations: Familiar 8. Quotations: Fiction | 9. Quotations: Spoken 10. Usage Frequency 11. Expressions 12. Expressions: Internet | 13. Translations: Modern 14. Translations: Ancient 15. Bible Trace 16. Derivations | 17. Rhymes 18. Anagrams 19. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
