nonconscious
adjective
non·con·scious
ˌnän-ˈkän(t)-shəs 
: not conscious : unconscious
a nonconscious mental process
nonconscious biases
nonconsciously
adverb
nonconsciousness
noun
Examples of nonconscious in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Critics could argue that each of the behaviors described earlier could also be programmed into a nonconscious robot.
—
Lars Chittka, Scientific American, 14 June 2023
Recent research suggests that people do not fear the holes; rather, images of clustered holes, which share basic visual characteristics with venomous organisms, lead to nonconscious fear.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 8 Aug. 2017
But the sort of nonconscious ambivalence revealed by our research does not seem pathological.
—Vivian Zayas and Yuichi Shoda, Discover Magazine, 18 Feb. 2019
This discomfort seemed to be related to the typical visual characteristics and pattern properties of trypophobic stimuli rather than to nonconscious associations with venomous animals.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 8 Aug. 2017
Blaming a nonsentient and nonconscious entity like a virus for our woes isn't very satisfying.
—Damon Linker, The Week, 7 Jan. 2022
As the thinking goes, these nonconscious prejudices and stereotypes are spontaneously and automatically activated and may inadvertently affect how white Americans see and treat Black people and other people of color.
—Tiffany L. Green, Scientific American, 28 Aug. 2020
Separating conscious fear from nonconscious threat processing from the start would avoid such confusion.
—Dean Mobbs, Scientific American, 20 Sep. 2019
Both people are highly likely to obsess over their sunk cost — law school tuition and time served for the lawyer, the original investment amount for the stock picker — in a nonconscious desire to justify their earlier decisions.
—Gary Belsky, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2016
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Lars Chittka, Scientific American, 14 June 2023
Recent research suggests that people do not fear the holes; rather, images of clustered holes, which share basic visual characteristics with venomous organisms, lead to nonconscious fear.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 8 Aug. 2017
But the sort of nonconscious ambivalence revealed by our research does not seem pathological.
—Vivian Zayas and Yuichi Shoda, Discover Magazine, 18 Feb. 2019
This discomfort seemed to be related to the typical visual characteristics and pattern properties of trypophobic stimuli rather than to nonconscious associations with venomous animals.
—Seriously Science, Discover Magazine, 8 Aug. 2017
Blaming a nonsentient and nonconscious entity like a virus for our woes isn't very satisfying.
—Damon Linker, The Week, 7 Jan. 2022
As the thinking goes, these nonconscious prejudices and stereotypes are spontaneously and automatically activated and may inadvertently affect how white Americans see and treat Black people and other people of color.
—Tiffany L. Green, Scientific American, 28 Aug. 2020
Separating conscious fear from nonconscious threat processing from the start would avoid such confusion.
—Dean Mobbs, Scientific American, 20 Sep. 2019
Both people are highly likely to obsess over their sunk cost — law school tuition and time served for the lawyer, the original investment amount for the stock picker — in a nonconscious desire to justify their earlier decisions.
—Gary Belsky, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2016
Cite this Entry
“Nonconscious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonconscious. Accessed 25 May. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
nonconscious
adjective
non·con·scious
(ˈ)nän-ˈkän-chəs
: not conscious
nonconscious psychic processes—A. A. Brill
A. A. BrillLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share