sentir

\sɑ̃.tiʁ\

/\sɑ̃.tiʁ\/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“sentir” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #1,756 in French word frequency and used as a verb.

#1,756
frequency rank, French
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Recevoir quelque impression par le moyen des sens, éprouver en soi quelque chose d’agréable ou de pénible.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

sentir vs Sétif
33% similar
sentir vs sévir
50% similar
sentir vs sortir
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for sentir
PropertyValue
Headwordsentir
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\sɑ̃.tiʁ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,756
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sentir” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). sentir lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for sentir is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \sɑ̃.tiʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #1,756 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 16 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for sentir, with forms such as "esntir", "senitr", and "senntir". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Sétif", "sévir", "sortir", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is sentir, spelled S-E-N-T-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Recevoir quelque impression par le moyen des sens, éprouver en soi quelque chose d’agréable ou de pénible.
  2. 2
    Action qui résulte de l’utilisation de son odorat.
  3. 3
    Action qui résulte de l’utilisation du toucher.
  4. 4
    Avoir une impression, ressentir.
  5. 5
    Être ému, touché, affecté de quelque chose d’extérieur.
  6. 6
    Avoir un sentiment, aimer, être disposé à aimer.
  7. 7
    Discerner, connaître directement, par intuition.
  8. 8
    Flairer.
  9. 9
    Avec la négation, avoir de la répugnance, de l’aversion.
  10. 10
    Exhaler, répandre une certaine odeur.
  11. 11
    S’emploie absolument dans cette acception avec les mots bon, mauvais, fort, etc.
  12. 12
    Exhaler une mauvaise odeur, puer.
  13. 13
    Avoir du goût, de la saveur, en parlant d’un aliment ou d’une boisson.
  14. 14
    Avoir le caractère, les manières, l’air, l’apparence de.
  15. 15
    à propos du climat.
  16. 16
    Connaître, percevoir en quel état, en quelle disposition on est.

Synonyms

humertoucher

This word in other languages

feel(English)sentir(Español)riechen(Deutsch)experimentar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: esntir,senitr,senntir,sentirr,sentri,senttir,setnir,snetir,ssentir

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sentir - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

esntir2senitr2senntir1sentirr1sentri2senttir1setnir2snetir2
Edit distance from "sentir"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "sentir"?
"sentir" is spelled S-E-N-T-I-R. The IPA pronunciation is \sɑ̃.tiʁ\.
What does "sentir" mean?
As a verb, "sentir" means: Recevoir quelque impression par le moyen des sens, éprouver en soi quelque chose d’agréable ou de pénible.
What words are commonly confused with "sentir"?
"sentir" is commonly confused with "Sétif", "sévir", "sortir". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sentir"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sentir" is \sɑ̃.tiʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "sentir" come from?
"sentir" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “sentir”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is S-E-N-T-I-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \sɑ̃.tiʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Sétif” - see the side-by-side comparison. sentir vs Sétif
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list