# feeling

Pronunciation: say "FEE-ling" US /ˈfilɪŋ/, UK /ˈfiːlɪŋ/

## Noun

1. An emotion or mental impression, such as joy, sorrow, or unease.
   - Simple: An emotion, like happiness, anger, or fear.
   - _A feeling of dread crept over him as the lights went out._
   - _Mixed feelings about the move kept her awake for nights._
3. Physical sensation, especially that perceived through the skin.
   - Simple: The ability to feel things through your skin, or what you feel, like heat, cold, or pain.
   - _The numbness faded and feeling slowly returned to his fingers._
   - _She had no feeling in her left arm after sleeping on it._
4. An intuitive sense or hunch about something, not based on clear reasoning.
   - Simple: A sense that something is true, even without clear proof.
   - _He had a nagging feeling that they had met somewhere before._
   - _She had a strong feeling the bus would be late, so she left the house twenty minutes early._
5. A person's sensitivity as something others can hurt or spare, or their general emotional well-being, usually as feelings.
   - Simple: The emotions a person has inside, especially ones that can be easily hurt.
   - _His careless joke hurt her feelings more than he realized._
   - _How can you laugh at her loss? Have you no feeling at all?_
6. Romantic or emotional attraction toward someone.
   - Simple: A romantic liking or attraction toward someone.
   - _He developed feelings for his coworker over the summer._
   - _He tried to ignore the feeling, but he knew he was falling for her._
7. An opinion or attitude held about a matter.
   - Simple: What you think or believe about something.
   - _The general feeling among staff was that the changes were overdue._
   - _She voiced strong feelings about how the funds should be spent._
8. The mood or overall sense that comes across from a place, a situation, or a piece of creative work.
   - Simple: The overall mood that a place, a situation, or a piece of art or writing gives.
   - _Despite the crowds, the old harbor town keeps a quiet, unhurried feeling._
   - _The novel's dreamlike feeling comes from its slow, drifting sentences._
9. An instinctive grasp of something, or a sensitive touch when handling it.
   - Simple: A natural sense for something that lets you understand it or handle it well.
   - _The translator's feeling for idiom makes the English version read as if it were written that way._
   - _As a rider she had a rare feeling for horses, coaxing calm from even the most nervous animals._

## Verb

2. Present participle and gerund of feel. — present participle and gerund of feel
   - Simple: The -ing form of feel. Use it after is, are or was, or as the name of the action.
   - _He was feeling the weight of the decision all week._
   - _Feeling her way through the unlit hall, she found the door._

## Adjective

10. Having, showing or expressing strong emotion or sensitivity.
   - Simple: Showing strong feelings, or easily moved by feelings.
   - _In a few feeling remarks at the ceremony, the principal thanked the volunteers who had rebuilt the flooded library._
   - _She spoke of her late mother in a low, feeling voice._

## Origin

Made of feel and the suffix -ing, the word already had the form felynge in Middle English.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/feeling (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).