Sentiment

noun

Frequency

Medium-High

CEFR Level

Neutral

Domain

General

Definition

1. A thought, opinion, or attitude based on a feeling about a situation.
2. The general feeling or mood shared by a group of people.
3. Gentle or tender emotions such as love or nostalgia, often considered excessive or unsuitable.

Context Alive

The mayor stood at the podium and made a passionate speech about saving the old library. The crowd cheered because she had captured the sentiment of the entire neighborhood perfectly. Nobody wanted to see the building torn down, and her words gave people hope that it could be saved.

Meanings

3 meanings

1 A Thought or Opinion Based on Feeling (Noun) Very Common ▼

This meaning is about an opinion or idea that comes from how you feel about something. Imagine your friend says “I think people should spend more time with their families instead of working so much.” That’s a sentiment — a personal view shaped by emotion and values. This is sentiment as a thought colored by feeling. You might hear “those are lovely sentiments, but they’re not very practical” or someone could say “my sentiments exactly” when they completely agree with you. Or picture a wedding speech where the best man shares warm sentiments about the couple’s future together. The word suggests something more personal and emotional than just a cold opinion. ✏️ “My sentiments exactly” is a very popular expression — it means “I feel the same way” or “I completely agree.”

Vivid Example

After the retirement speech, several colleagues stood up to share their own words. Each one expressed similar sentiments about how much the departing manager had meant to the team. By the end, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

2 The General Feeling or Mood of a Group (Noun) Very Common ▼

This meaning is about the overall attitude or mood that many people share at the same time. Imagine an election year where most people in the country are angry about rising prices. News reporters describe this as “anti-government sentiment” — the collective mood of the public. This is sentiment as a shared feeling across a group. You might read “public sentiment has turned against the new policy” or an analyst could say “market sentiment is very negative right now.” Or think about a neighborhood where everyone is frustrated about a new construction project — the local sentiment is strongly against it. The word points to a feeling that belongs to a community, not just one person. ✏️ In business and finance, “market sentiment” and “consumer sentiment” are extremely common — they describe how confident or worried people feel about the economy.

Vivid Example

The government announced another round of tax increases last week. Public sentiment shifted overnight, with thousands of people taking to social media to express their frustration. Polls showed the lowest approval ratings the party had seen in years.

3 Excessive or Unsuitable Tender Feelings (Noun) Common ▼

This meaning is about soft, emotional feelings like love, nostalgia, or pity — especially when they seem too much or out of place. Imagine a tough business negotiation where one side refuses to close a factory because the owner grew up there. Someone might say “there’s no room for sentiment in business.” This is sentiment as emotion that gets in the way of practical decisions. You might hear “she kept the old letters purely out of sentiment” or someone could say “the film is drowning in sentiment.” Or picture a manager who can’t fire an underperforming employee because they feel too sorry for them. The word carries a slightly negative tone here — it suggests emotions are clouding good judgment. ✏️ When used this way, sentiment is uncountable — you say “too much sentiment,” not “too many sentiments.” It’s close in meaning to “sentimentality.”

Vivid Example

The old couple debated what to do with their crumbling holiday cottage. Logic said they should sell it, but sentiment kept pulling them back to all the memories they had made there. In the end, their hearts won and they decided to restore it instead.

Examples from the Street

“I agree with the sentiment, but I wouldn’t have put it quite so bluntly.”

I share the underlying feeling, but I would have expressed it in a less direct way

“There’s a growing sentiment that the government isn’t doing enough about housing.”

More and more people are starting to feel that the authorities aren’t taking the housing problem seriously

“My sentiments exactly — couldn’t have said it better myself.”

That’s precisely how I feel too — you’ve expressed it perfectly

Common Patterns

the/a sentiment → the underlying feeling or opinion behind something said or done

public/popular sentiment → the general feeling or opinion shared by most people

growing/rising sentiment → a feeling or opinion that is becoming more widespread

anti-/pro- sentiment → negative or positive feeling towards something (anti-war sentiment, pro-European sentiment)

share/echo the sentiment → feel the same way as someone else

express/voice a sentiment → communicate a feeling or opinion openly

my sentiments exactly → a fixed phrase meaning “I feel exactly the same way” (always plural)

sentiment and emotion → deep feeling, often in contrast with logic or reason

no room for sentiment → a situation where emotions must be set aside in favour of practical decisions

pure/mere sentiment → emotion without practical value, sometimes used dismissively

Collocations

4 collocations

public sentiment

the general feeling of the population

growing sentiment

an opinion that is becoming more widespread

anti-war sentiment

feelings opposed to military conflict

noble sentiment

a morally admirable feeling or opinion

Example Sentences

12 examples

Public sentiment has shifted dramatically against the new tax policy

The general feeling among ordinary people has changed sharply, and most now oppose the new tax rules.

I understand the sentiment behind the gift, even though it wasn’t what I wanted

I appreciate the thoughtful feeling that motivated the present, even though the actual item wasn’t to my taste.

“We should all work less and enjoy life more.” “My sentiments exactly!”

“People ought to spend fewer hours at their jobs and have more fun.” “That’s precisely what I think too!”

There’s a strong anti-immigration sentiment in many parts of the country right now

Negative feelings towards people coming from other countries are very intense in several regions at the moment.

She expressed the sentiment that nobody in management actually cared about the staff

She openly communicated her belief that none of the senior leaders genuinely valued the employees.

In business, there’s no room for sentiment — you have to make tough decisions

In the commercial world, you can’t let emotions guide you — you need to make difficult choices based on facts.

The poem captures the sentiment of loss beautifully without ever becoming sentimental

The poem expresses the feeling of grief with real elegance without crossing the line into excessive emotion.

A growing sentiment among young voters is that neither party represents their interests

An increasing number of young people eligible to vote feel that no political party speaks for them.

Several colleagues shared the sentiment that the new policy was unfair, but nobody spoke up

Multiple workmates felt the same way about the rule being unjust, yet not a single person raised the issue openly.

He kept the old watch out of pure sentiment — it hadn’t worked in years

He held onto the broken timepiece purely for emotional reasons — it had stopped functioning a long time ago.

Learner Examples

★

There’s a common sentiment among language learners that grammar is boring, but a creative teacher can change that completely

Many people studying a new language share the feeling that structural rules are dull, but an imaginative educator can transform that attitude entirely.

★

When a student says “English is impossible,” I always echo the sentiment by saying “I know it feels that way” before showing them how far they’ve actually come

When a learner claims the language can’t be mastered, I always acknowledge the feeling by agreeing it seems overwhelming before demonstrating the real progress they’ve already made.