consciousness

[ kon-shuhs-nis ]

noun

1. the state of being conscious; awareness of one's own existence, sensations, thoughts, surroundings, etc.
2. the thoughts and feelings, collectively, of an individual or of an aggregate of people:

   the moral consciousness of a nation.

3. full activity of the mind and senses, as in waking life:

   to regain consciousness after fainting.

4. awareness of something for what it is; internal knowledge:

   consciousness of wrongdoing.

5. concern, interest, or acute awareness:

   class consciousness.

6. the mental activity of which a person is aware as contrasted with unconscious mental processes.
7. Philosophy. the mind or the mental faculties as characterized by thought, feelings, and volition.

Other Words From

• under·conscious·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of consciousness¹

First recorded in 1625–35; conscious + -ness

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. raise one's consciousness, to increase one's awareness and understanding of one's own needs, behavior, attitudes, etc., especially as a member of a particular social or political group.

Example Sentences

Asked again about her husband, she said his eyes rolled back and she believed he lost consciousness.

From BBC

In this way, he was also like Tanton, Taylor said in a subsequent conversation, who found his own “quasi-racial consciousness” through his environmental enlightenment.

From Salon

Sant added that the cat had regained consciousness, and promised to take it in for a health check.

From BBC

Ms Simpson, 21, from Tynan in County Armagh, died six days after being admitted to Altnagelvin Hospital, having never regained consciousness.

From BBC

“We don't know much else beyond this basic type of sentience. It's hard to answer what this implies for consciousness of two animals fusing into one since it depends on how we define consciousness.”

From Salon

Related Words

• alertness
• apprehension
• awareness
• recognition
• sensibility