different between sensible vs actual
sensible
English
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis (“perceptible by the senses, having feeling, sensible”), from senti? (“to feel, perceive”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?sen.s?.bl?/
- (General American) IPA(key): /?s?n.s?.bl?/
Adjective
sensible (comparative more sensible, superlative most sensible or sensiblest)
- (now dated or formal) Perceptible by the senses.
- 1751, John Arbuthnot, An Essay Concerning the Effects of Air on Human Bodies (page 1)
- Air is sensible to the Touch by its Motion, and by its Resistance to Bodies moved in it.
- 1778, William Lewis, The New Dispensatory (page 91)
- The sensible qualities of argentina promise no great virtue of this kind; for to the taste it discovers only a slight roughishness, from whence it may be presumed to be entitled to a place only among the milder corroborants.
- 1902, William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience, Folio Society 2008, page 45:
- It has been vouchsafed, for example, to very few Christian believers to have had a sensible vision of their Saviour.
- 1751, John Arbuthnot, An Essay Concerning the Effects of Air on Human Bodies (page 1)
- Easily perceived; appreciable.
- The discovery of the mines of America […] does not seem to have had any very sensible effect upon the prices of things in England.
- (archaic) Able to feel or perceive.
- (archaic) Liable to external impression; easily affected; sensitive.
- a sensible thermometer
- Of or pertaining to the senses; sensory.
- (archaic) Cognizant; having the perception of something; aware of something.
- , Book II, Chapter I
- He cannot think at any time, waking or sleeping, without being sensible of it.
- 1810, Thomas Green, Extracts from the diary of a lover of literature
- we are now sensible that it would have been absurd
- , Book II, Chapter I
- Acting with or showing good sense; able to make good judgements based on reason.
- 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230b.
- They ask questions of someone who thinks he's got something sensible to say on some matter when actually he hasn't.
- 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 230b.
- Characterized more by usefulness or practicality than by fashionableness, especially of clothing.
- 1999, Neil Gaiman, Stardust (2001 Perennial Edition), page 8,
- They would walk, on fair evenings, around the village, and discuss the theory of crop rotation, and the weather, and other such sensible matters.
- 1999, Neil Gaiman, Stardust (2001 Perennial Edition), page 8,
Usage notes
- "Sensible" describes the reasonable way in which a person may think about things or do things:
- It wouldn't be sensible to start all over again now.
- It is not comparable to its cognates in certain languages (see below).
- "Sensitive" describes an emotional way in which a person may react to things:
- He has always been a sensitive child.
- I didn’t realize she was so sensitive about her work.
Related terms
- sense
- sensory
- sensual
- sensuous
- supersensible
Translations
Noun
sensible (plural sensibles)
- (obsolete) Sensation; sensibility.
- (obsolete) That which impresses itself on the senses; anything perceptible.
- 1857, William Fleming, Vocabulary of Philosophyyy
- Aristotle distinguished sensibles into common and proper.
- 1857, William Fleming, Vocabulary of Philosophyyy
- (obsolete) That which has sensibility; a sensitive being.
- This melancholy extends itself not to men only, but even to vegetals and sensibles.
Further reading
- sensible in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- sensible in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
- sensible at OneLook Dictionary Search
Catalan
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis, attested from the 14th century.
Pronunciation
- (Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /s?n?si.bl?/
- (Valencian) IPA(key): /sen?si.ble/
Adjective
sensible (masculine and feminine plural sensibles)
- sentient
- sensitive
Derived terms
- sensiblement
Related terms
- insensible
- sensibilitat
- sentir
References
Further reading
- “sensible” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “sensible” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “sensible” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /s??.sibl/
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Latin s?nsibilis.
Adjective
sensible (plural sensibles)
- sensitive
Derived terms
- sensibilité
- sensiblement
Related terms
- sentir
Etymology 2
Ellipsis of note sensible.
Noun
sensible f (plural sensibles)
- (music) leading tone
Further reading
- “sensible” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
German
Pronunciation
Adjective
sensible
- inflection of sensibel:
- strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
- strong nominative/accusative plural
- weak nominative all-gender singular
- weak accusative feminine/neuter singular
Spanish
Etymology
From Latin s?nsibilis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sen?sible/, [s?n?si.??le]
Adjective
sensible (plural sensibles)
- sensitive
- sentient
- responsive
Usage notes
- Sensible is a false friend, and does not mean reasonable in Spanish. Spanish equivalents are shown above, in the "Translations" section of the English entry sensible.
Antonyms
- insensible
Related terms
Further reading
- “sensible” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.
sensible From the web:
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- what sensible heat
- what's sensible in french
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- what's sensible temperature
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- what's sensible in hindi
actual
English
Etymology
From Middle English actual, actuel (“active”), from Anglo-Norman actuel, actual, and its source Late Latin actu?lis (“active, practical”), from Latin actus (“act, action, performance”), from agere (“to do; to act”) + -alis (“-al”).
Pronunciation
- (US) IPA(key): /?æk(t)?(?w)?l/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?ak(t)?j(?)?l/
- (dated, Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?aktj(?)?l/
Adjective
actual (not comparable)
- (chiefly theology) relating to a person's acts or deeds; active, practical [from 14th c.]
- c. 1606, William Shakespeare, Macbeth, First Folio 1623, V.1:
- In this slumbry agitation, besides her walking, and other actuall performances, what (at any time) haue you heard her say?
- 1946, The American Ecclesiastical Review, vol. 114:
- Apparently, the holy Doctor was referring to actual, rather than original, sin; yet the basis of his argument for Mary's holiness, the divine maternity, would logically lead to the conclusion that she was free from original sin also.
- c. 1606, William Shakespeare, Macbeth, First Folio 1623, V.1:
- Existing in reality, not just potentially; really acted or acting; occurring in fact. [from 14th c.]
- Synonym: real
- Antonyms: potential, possible, virtual, speculative, conceivable, theoretical, nominal, hypothetical, estimated
- (now rare) in action at the time being; now existing; current. [from 16th c.]
- c. 1793, Edward Gibbon, Memoirs of My Life, Penguin 1990, p. 85:
- To my actual feelings it seems incredible that I could ever believe that I believed in Transubstantiation!
- c. 1793, Edward Gibbon, Memoirs of My Life, Penguin 1990, p. 85:
- Used as intensifier to emphasise a following noun; exact, specific, very. [from 18th c.]
- Synonym: present
- Antonyms: future, past
Usage notes
- In most Romance, Slavic and Germanic languages the cognate of actual means “current”. This meaning has also been used in English since the sixteenth century but is now rare due to a semantic shift.
- The phrase in actual fact has been proscribed by some prescriptivist sources as redundant.
Synonyms
- positive
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Noun
actual (plural actuals)
- an actual, real one; notably:
- (finance) something actually received; real receipts, as distinct from estimated ones.
- (military) a radio callsign modifier that specifies the commanding officer of the unit or asset denoted by the remainder of the callsign and not the officer's assistant or other designee.
- Bravo Six Actual, this is Charlie One. Come in, over. (The radio operator is requesting to speak to the commander of the unit under the call sign "Bravo Six.")
See also
- certain
- genuine
References
Further reading
- actual in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- actual in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
Anagrams
- acault
Catalan
Etymology
From Latin actu?lis.
Pronunciation
- (Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /?k.tu?al/
- (Valencian) IPA(key): /ak.tu?al/
Adjective
actual (masculine and feminine plural actuals)
- present, current
- factual
Derived terms
Related terms
- actualitat
Further reading
- “actual” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “actual” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
- “actual” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “actual” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Galician
Etymology
From Latin actu?lis.
Adverb
actual m or f (plural actuais)
- current, present
- factual, real, actual
Derived terms
Related terms
- actualidade
Further reading
- “actual” in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega, Royal Galician Academy.
Interlingua
Adjective
actual
- present, current
- factual
- (philosophy) actual, real
Related terms
Middle English
Etymology
Borrowed from Anglo-Norman actuel and Late Latin ?ctu?lis; equivalent to act +? -al.
Alternative forms
- actuale, actualle, actuelle
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /aktiu??a?l/, /?aktiu?al/, /aktiu????l/, /?aktiu??l/
Adjective
actual
- actual, real, true
- (philosophy, theology) active
Derived terms
- actualy
Descendants
- English: actual
- Scots: actual
References
- “act???l, -??l, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Occitan
Alternative forms
- actuau (Gascon)
Etymology
From Latin actu?lis.
Pronunciation
Adjective
actual m (feminine singular actuala, masculine plural actuals, feminine plural actualas)
- current
Derived terms
- actualament
Related terms
- actualitat
Portuguese
Adjective
actual m or f (plural actuais, comparable)
- Superseded spelling of atual.
Romanian
Etymology
From French actuel, from Latin actualis.
Adjective
actual m or n (feminine singular actual?, masculine plural actuali, feminine and neuter plural actuale)
- present-day
Declension
Scots
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?ak(t)w?l/
Adjective
actual (comparative mair actual, superlative maist actual)
- actual
References
- Eagle, Andy, ed. (2016) The Online Scots Dictionary, Scots Online.
Spanish
Etymology
From Latin actu?lis. Cognate with English actual although a false friend.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /a??twal/, [a???t?wal]
- Rhymes: -al
Adjective
actual (plural actuales)
- present, current
- factual
- (philosophy) actual, real
- present-day
Usage notes
- Actual is a false friend, and does not mean the same as the English word actual. Spanish equivalents are shown above, in the "Translations" section of the English entry actual.
Derived terms
Related terms
- actualidad
Prepositional phrase
actual m (plural actuales)
- (preceded by del) Of the current month, year, etc.
- Synonyms: corriente, presente
See also
- Appendix:False friends between English and Spanish
Further reading
- “actual” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.
Anagrams
- culata
actual From the web:
- what actually killed earnhardt
- what actually happened on thanksgiving
- what actually killed lincoln
- what actually happens when you die
- what actually killed amy winehouse
- what actually brought about the rebellion
- what actually happens when you stretch
- what actual angels look like
you may also like
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