Standard Lemma guide

subconscious

adj · noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /sʌbˈkɒn.ʃəs/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /sʌbˈkɒn.t͡ʃəs/
  • General-American: /sʌbˈkɑn.ʃəs/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɒnʃəs
  • rhymes with -ɒntʃəs
  • rhymes with -ɑnʃəs
  • CMU ARPABET: S AH0 B K AA1 N SH AH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Occuring in the part of our mind that we are not normally aware of.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: no longer in technical use

Topics: human-sciences, psychology, sciences

Examples

  • The sense of smell can be a subconscious influence on our actions.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The part of the mind that we are not normally aware of.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Topics: human-sciences, psychology, sciences

Examples

  • A person can sometimes wake up knowing the solution to a problem that their subconscious has been working on.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: subconsciousness, subconscious mind

Antonyms: none provided

3

adjective satellite

Meaning 3

just below the level of consciousness

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

psychic activity just below the level of awareness

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: subconscious mind

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: mind, head, brain, psyche, nous

History

Etymology

From sub- + conscious.

Across languages

Translations

8 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: اللَّاوَعِيّ (al-lāwaʕiyy) — partially conscious
  • Catalan: subconscient — partially conscious
  • Manx: fo-chooinsheansagh — partially conscious
  • Māori: mauri pōtere — partially conscious
  • Russian: полубессозна́тельный (polubessoznátelʹnyj) — partially conscious
  • Russian: полуо́бморочный (poluóbmoročnyj) — partially conscious
  • Spanish: parcialmente consciente — partially conscious
  • Uzbek: ong-osti — partially conscious