n. 1. a. A perception associated with stimulation of a sense organ or with a specific body condition: the sensation of heat; a visual sensation. b. The faculty to feel or perceive; physical sensibility: The patient has very little sensation left in the right leg. c. An indefinite generalized body feeling: a sensation of lightness. 2. A state of heightened interest or emotion: "The anticipation produced in me a sensation somewhat between bliss and fear" (James Weldon Johnson). 3. a. A state of intense public interest and excitement: "The purser made a sensation as sailors like to do, by predicting a storm" (Evelyn Waugh). b. A cause of such interest and excitement: The band's new singer is a sensation. [French, from Old French, from Medieval Latin sēnsātiō, sēnsātiōn-, from Late Latin sēnsātus, gifted with sense; see SENSATE.] |
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