synesthesia

noun

syn·​es·​the·​sia ˌsi-nəs-ˈthē-zh(ē-)ə 

1

: a concomitant sensation

especially : a subjective sensation or image of a sense (as of color) other than the one (as of sound) being stimulated

2

: the condition marked by the experience of such sensations

synesthetic

ˌsi-nəs-ˈthe-tik 

adjective

Examples of synesthesia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Mancuso has synesthesia, a perceptual condition in which any one kind of sensory stimulation can spark spontaneous reactions in another. —Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Apr. 2024

But the driving force of the movie is synesthesia, a condition when your brain processes input through unrelated senses, like connecting letters with taste or someone’s name with a color. —Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 4 Apr. 2024

The mystical Russian composer experienced synesthesia, the neurological condition in which the brain involuntarily associates one sense with another. —Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024

The authors suggest that grapheme-color synesthesia, for instance, might represent a kind of vivid memory of colored alphabet blocks or fridge magnets. —Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 21 Apr. 2015

People with hyper-visual brains often have synesthesia, Zeman said, in which the brain experiences more than one sense simultaneously, such as tasting colors, feeling sounds or assigning specific colors to numbers and letters. —Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024

Instead, drawing on Rudy’s synesthesia, the film bursts to life in sequences where the surrounding environment — a nearby basketball game, kids playing jump rope, a lively game of checkers at the park — all become part of a symphony. —Cat Cardenas, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2024

Others have synesthesia and see colors or numbers decorating their perception. —Shayla Love, Discover Magazine, 7 Dec. 2023

This opens the door to the idea that, to some extent, synesthesia can be learned. —Mark Travers, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from syn- + -esthesia (as in anesthesia)

First Known Use

circa 1891, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

synesthesia

noun

syn·​es·​the·​sia

variants or chiefly British synaesthesia

ˌsin-əs-ˈthē-zh(ē-)ə 

: a concomitant sensation and especially a subjective sensation or image of a sense (as of color) other than the one (as of sound) being stimulated

also : the condition marked by the experience of such sensations

synesthetic adjective

or chiefly British synaesthetic

-ˈthet-ik