Kinesthesia
/ˌkɪn.əsˈθiː.zi.ə/noun
The sense of the position and movement of one’s own body parts.
Did you know?Kinesthesia comes from Greek roots for “movement” and “feeling,” and the same kinesis root later powered modern words like cinema and kinetic—proof that motion has always been a spell in language.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
κίνησις (kínēsis)
“movement, motion”
Ancient Greek
Greek
αἴσθησις (aísthēsis)
“perception, sensation”
Late 19th Century
English
kinesthesia
“the sense of bodily movement and position”
Modern English
English
kinesthesia
“the sensory awareness of body movement and position”
Explore more surprising origins