Emotion vs. Sentiment — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on September 27, 2023
Emotion is a complex psychological state, often instinctive. Sentiment refers to an attitude, thought, or judgment prompted by feeling. Both relate to feelings, but emotion is raw, while sentiment is more reflective.
Difference Between Emotion and Sentiment
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Key Differences
Emotion and sentiment both revolve around feelings, but they have distinct nuances. Emotion can be described as a raw, immediate psychological response to events or situations. It's the intense, often uncontrolled reactions that humans experience, like joy, sadness, anger, or fear. Sentiment, on the other hand, leans more towards an attitude, thought, or judgment that's influenced by emotion.
Consider the depth and duration. Emotions are often fleeting and can change rapidly. You might feel a rush of happiness from a compliment and then, moments later, anxiety from a sudden challenge. Sentiments, however, tend to be more enduring, developing over time. They encapsulate a person's overall feeling or attitude towards a particular subject, often built upon multiple emotions over time.
Emotions are universal. Across cultures, people can generally understand basic emotions like happiness, sadness, or anger. They're foundational human experiences. Sentiments, though, are often influenced by cultural, societal, or personal beliefs and experiences, making them more individualistic and subjective.
While emotions often manifest physically – through tears, laughter, or even physical reactions like a racing heart – sentiments are more likely to be expressed in words, beliefs, or attitudes. You might say you have a sentiment of love towards your family, but the emotion you feel when you see them is joy.
To sum it up, emotion is the raw material – the unfiltered, immediate feeling. Sentiment is the crafted product, formed by reflecting upon and processing those emotions.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
A complex psychological state
Attitude or judgment prompted by feeling
Duration
Often fleeting
More enduring
Universality
Universal across cultures
Influenced by personal experiences
Manifestation
Often physically observable
Expressed in beliefs or attitudes
Complexity
Raw and immediate
Reflective, built upon emotions
Compare with Definitions
Emotion
A raw feeling like joy, sadness, or anger.
He struggled to hide his emotion during the movie.
Sentiment
An emotional response developed over time.
His sentiment towards his hometown grew fonder over the years.
Emotion
A complex psychological state, often instinctive.
The news evoked a strong emotion in her.
Sentiment
A refined or delicate emotion.
The poem was filled with tender sentiments.
Emotion
An affective state of consciousness.
Emotion often trumps logic in decision-making.
Sentiment
A personal belief influenced by emotion.
The sentiment of the public was clear on the issue.
Emotion
A non-permanent, changeable feeling state.
Her emotions swung wildly throughout the day.
Sentiment
An attitude, thought, or judgment prompted by feeling.
His sentiment towards the project was positive.
Emotion
Emotions are biologically-based psychological states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioural responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definition.
Sentiment
A thought, view, or attitude, especially one based mainly on emotion instead of reason
An anti-American sentiment swept through the country.
Emotion
A mental state that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by physiological changes; a feeling
The emotions of joy, sorrow, and anger.
Sentiment
Emotion; feeling
Different forms of music convey different kinds of sentiment.
Emotion
Such mental states or the qualities that are associated with them, especially in contrast to reason
A decision based on emotion rather than logic.
Sentiment
Tender or romantic feeling
Felt strong sentiment for each other.
Emotion
(obsolete) movement; agitation. 18
Sentiment
Maudlin emotion; sentimentality
"He called her 'beloved madame,' and many other endearments, delivered with gallant mushiness, irony damascened with sentiment" (Robert D. Richardson).
Emotion
A person's internal state of being and involuntary physiological response to an object or a situation, based on or tied to physical state and sensory data.
Sentiment
The thought or emotion that underlies a remark or gesture
The child's gift was ridiculous, but the sentiment behind it moved the mother to tears.
Emotion
A reaction by a non-human organism with behavioral and physiological elements similar to a person's response.
Sentiment
The expression of delicate and sensitive feeling, especially in art and literature.
Emotion
A moving of the mind or soul; excitement of the feelings, whether pleasing or painful; disturbance or agitation of mind caused by a specific exciting cause and manifested by some sensible effect on the body.
How different the emotions between departure and return!
Some vague emotion of delight.
Sentiment
A general thought, feeling, or sense.
The sentiment emerged that we were acting too soon.
Emotion
Any strong feeling
Sentiment
(uncountable) Feelings, especially tender feelings, as apart from reason or judgment, or of a weak or foolish kind.
Emotion
An immediate response to external stimuli.
His emotion was palpable when he saw the surprise.
Sentiment
A thought prompted by passion or feeling; a state of mind in view of some subject; feeling toward or respecting some person or thing; disposition prompting to action or expression.
The word sentiment, agreeably to the use made of it by our best English writers, expresses, in my own opinion very happily, those complex determinations of the mind which result from the coöperation of our rational powers and of our moral feelings.
Alike to council or the assembly came,With equal souls and sentiments the same.
Sentiment
Hence, generally, a decision of the mind formed by deliberation or reasoning; thought; opinion; notion; judgment; as, to express one's sentiments on a subject.
Sentiments of philosophers about the perception of external objects.
Sentiment, as here and elsewhere employed by Reid in the meaning of opinion (sententia), is not to be imitated.
Sentiment
A sentence, or passage, considered as the expression of a thought; a maxim; a saying; a toast.
Sentiment
Sensibility; feeling; tender susceptibility.
Mr. Hume sometimes employs (after the manner of the French metaphysicians) sentiment as synonymous with feeling; a use of the word quite unprecedented in our tongue.
Less of sentiment than sense.
Sentiment
Tender, romantic, or nostalgic feeling or emotion
Sentiment
A personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty;
My opinion differs from yours
What are your thoughts on Haiti?
Sentiment
A view or opinion colored by emotions.
She shared her sentiment on the matter, reflecting her experiences.
Common Curiosities
Is every emotion tied to a sentiment?
Not necessarily. While emotions can influence sentiments, they can exist independently.
Are emotions always visible?
Not always, but they often manifest physically or behaviorally.
Can the same emotion lead to different sentiments?
Absolutely. Individual experiences and beliefs can shape sentiments differently.
What is emotion in simple terms?
Emotion is a raw, immediate feeling like joy, sadness, or anger.
How are sentiments expressed?
Sentiments are often conveyed through words, attitudes, or beliefs.
Can sentiments change over time?
Yes, sentiments can evolve based on experiences and reflections.
How do emotions affect decision-making?
Emotions can influence choices, sometimes overruling logical thought.
Why do we experience emotion?
Emotions are innate, often arising from external stimuli or internal thoughts.
Can you measure sentiment?
While not exact, sentiments can be gauged through language, surveys, or behavioral analysis.
How does sentiment relate to emotion?
Sentiment is an attitude or judgment influenced by emotion.
Is it possible to control our emotions?
While we can't always control emotions, we can learn to manage our reactions to them.
Can sentiment be positive or negative?
Yes, sentiments can range from highly positive to highly negative based on feelings.
Are animals capable of emotion?
Yes, many animals display signs of experiencing emotions.
Is sentiment always based on personal experience?
Often yes, but sentiments can also be influenced by societal or cultural beliefs.
How do artists use emotion and sentiment?
Artists often evoke emotions in their work, leading audiences to develop sentiments about the piece.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
