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Haptic felt its way into English in the 19th century as a back-formation of haptics, a noun which was borrowed from the New Latin hapticē (meaning "science of touch," and derived ultimately from the Greek haptesthai, meaning "to touch") in the 1700s. Haptic was originally a medical synonym for tactile. By the 20th century, it had developed a psychological sense, describing individuals whose perception supposedly depended primarily on touch rather than sight. Although almost no one today divides humans into haptic and visual personalities, English retains the broadened psychological sense of haptic as well as the older "tactile" sense.
Examples of haptic in a Sentence
Mitch Wallace, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2025
Ather also offers a haptic throttle with pressure sensors and a take-off mode, which is, in essence, Ather’s version of launch control for adjusting the power output.
—New Atlas, 3 Sep. 2025
Their adaptability and independence from specific materials also open doors to personalized sensors for prosthetics, medical applications, and immersive haptic systems.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2025
Capacitive control buttons on the stems incorporate haptic feedback for more natural-feeling interaction.
—PC Magazine, 29 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Haptic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/haptic. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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