What does "proprioception" mean?

The sense of the position of parts of the body, relative to other neighbouring parts of the body.

How do you pronounce "proprioception"?

Pronounced //ˌpɹoʊ.pɹi.oʊˈsɛp.ʃən//.

Common synonyms include: kinesthesia, kinesthetics, kinesthetics, propriosensitivity, sixth sense.

//ˌpɹoʊ.pɹi.oʊˈsɛp.ʃən// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
The sense of the position of parts of the body, relative to other neighbouring parts of the body. countable, uncountable
"[…] it is achieved through a neuromuscular feedback system known as proprioception or kinaesthetic awareness, as well as through an auditory control system in which the ear monitors the sound and makes […]"
2
the ability to sense the position and location and orientation and movement of the body and its parts wordnet

"Some people refer to proprioception as "the sixth sense"."

From proprioceptor, from Latin proprius (“one's own”) + reception. Coined by British neurophysiologist Charles Scott Sherrington in 1906.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.