English
supersense
Supersense comes from Middle English sense ‘meaning, signification’, from Old French sens ‘reason’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sent- ‘to perceive’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sent-1‘to perceive’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sentiō1‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsentiō1‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēnsus1‘perception, feeling, sensation’
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sinnaz1‘sense, perception’reconstructed
- Frankishc. 250–700*sinn1reconstructed
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*sennus1‘sense, reason’reconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400sens1‘reason’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sense1‘meaning, signification’
- English1500–presentsense1
- Englishtodaysupersense1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English supersense
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sent-Wiktionary, English supersense‘to perceive’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sentiōWiktionary, English supersense‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsentiōWiktionary, English supersense‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēnsusWiktionary, English supersense‘perception, feeling, sensation’
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sinnazWiktionary, English supersense‘sense, perception’reconstructed
- Frankishc. 250–700*sinnWiktionary, English supersensereconstructed
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*sennusWiktionary, English supersense‘sense, reason’reconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400sensWiktionary, English supersense‘reason’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500senseWiktionary, English supersense‘meaning, signification’
- English1500–presentsenseWiktionary, English supersense
- EnglishtodaysupersenseWiktionary, English supersense
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sent- ‘to perceive’
through Proto-Italic *sentiō ‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’
through Latin sentiō ‘to feel, to sense, to perceive’
sentence, sensitive, consent, sentiment, scent, sensible, consensus, sensor, resent, sensibility, sentient, assent, sentience, 30 more
through Latin sēnsus ‘perception, feeling, sensation’
sensation, sensual, sensuous, sensu, 17 more
through English sense
Today it means
noun The sense of a word that includes a subsense.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “supersense”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sent- / supersense