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Sense vs Fathom - What's the difference?

sense | fathom | Related terms |

As nouns the difference between sense and fathom

is that sense is (manner to perceive) Any of the manners by which living beings perceive the physical world: for humans sight, smell, hearing, touch, taste while fathom is grasp, envelopment, control.

As verbs the difference between sense and fathom

is that sense is to use biological senses: to either smell, watch, taste, hear or feel while fathom is to encircle with outstretched arms, especially to take a measurement; to embrace.

sense

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (senseid) Any of the manners by which living beings perceive the physical world: for humans sight, smell, hearing, touch, taste.
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) (William Shakespeare)
  • Let fancy still my sense in Lethe steep.
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) (Milton)
  • What surmounts the reach / Of human sense I shall delineate.
  • (senseid)Perception through the intellect; apprehension; awareness.
  • a sense of security
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) Sir (Philip Sidney)
  • this Basilius, having the quick sense of a lover
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) (John Milton)
  • high disdain from sense of injured merit
  • (senseid)Sound practical or moral judgment.
  • It's common sense not to put metal objects in a microwave oven.
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) (w, L'Estrange)
  • Some are so hardened in wickedness as to have no sense of the most friendly offices.
  • (senseid)The meaning, reason, or value of something.
  • You don’t make any sense .
    the true sense of words or phrases
  • * Bible, Neh. viii. 8
  • So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense .
  • * (and other bibliographic particulars) (Shakespeare)
  • I think 'twas in another sense .
  • (senseid)A natural appreciation or ability.
  • A keen musical sense
  • (senseid)(pragmatics) The way that a referent is presented.
  • (senseid)(semantics) A single conventional use of a word; one of the entries for a word in a dictionary.
  • (mathematics) One of two opposite directions in which a vector (especially of motion) may point. See also polarity.
  • (mathematics) One of two opposite directions of rotation, clockwise versus anti-clockwise.
  • (senseid) referring to the strand of a nucleic acid that directly specifies the product.
  • Hyponyms

    * See also

    Derived terms

    * sense of smell (see olfaction) * (l)

    See also

    * business sense * common sense * sixth sense * sight / vision * hearing / audition * taste / gustation * smell / olfaction * touch / tactition * thermoception * nociception * equilibrioception * proprioception

    Verb

    (sens)
  • To use biological senses: to either smell, watch, taste, hear or feel.
  • To instinctively be aware.
  • She immediately sensed her disdain.
  • To comprehend.
  • Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * ----

    fathom

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (obsolete) Grasp, envelopment, control.
  • (nautical) A measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms, standardised to six feet, now used mainly for measuring depths in seas or oceans.
  • (by extension) Mental reach or scope; penetration; the extent of capacity; depth of thought or contrivance.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Another of his fathom they have none / To lead their business (Othello, I.i. 151-2).

    Synonyms

    *(measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms) brace

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (archaic) To encircle with outstretched arms, especially to take a measurement; to embrace.
  • To measure the depth of, take a sounding of.
  • (figuratively) To get to the bottom of; to manage to comprehend (a problem etc.).
  • I can't for the life of me fathom what this means.

    Synonyms

    * fathom out, figure out, puzzle out, work out