Sensus

Sensus is a Latin noun meaning sense, perception, feeling, or opinion. It covers both concrete bodily senses and more abstract meanings such as interpretation, significance, or general understanding. In Latin, sensus is a fourteenth declension noun and has given rise to a number of loaned terms in philosophy, theology, and biblical exegesis.

In philosophy and rhetoric, sensus appears in the expression sensus communis, or the common sense, referring to a shared faculty or disposition that allows people to judge with a common understanding. The idea has influenced later formulations of judgment and aesthetics, including Kant’s discussions of communal judgment, and it features in debates about how communities arrive at shared meaning. In biblical studies, the term sensus plenior denotes a deeper or fuller sense of Scripture that goes beyond the literal or immediate meaning, often understood as the intended meaning perceived by God.

In Catholic theology, sensus fidelium, or the sense of the faithful, describes the collective discernment of the whole body of believers in matters of faith and morals. While not a substitute for authoritative doctrine, it is regarded as a genuine guide that can reflect or alert to the truth when authentically united and guided by the Holy Spirit. The concept has historical roots in patristic and medieval writers and remains part of contemporary theological discourse.

Sensus is also encountered as a proper name in modern times, used by companies and brands (for example, in metering and utilities), where it functions independently of its linguistic meaning.