visceral

adjective

vis·​cer·​al ˈvi-sə-rəl 

ˈvis-rəl

1

: felt in or as if in the internal organs of the body : deep

a visceral conviction

2

: not intellectual : instinctive, unreasoning

visceral drives

3

: dealing with crude or elemental emotions : earthy

a visceral novel

4

: of, relating to, or located on or among the viscera : splanchnic

visceral organs

viscerally

ˈvi-sə-rə-lē 

ˈvis-rə-

adverb

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The Tie Between Visceral and Biology

Apologies in advance for the offal puns, but we have a gut feeling it’s going to be hard to resist serving them up for this particular word. After all, the English language is home to a bellyful of words that refer literally to body parts and figuratively to emotions associated with them. If something has ever tickled your funny bone or touched your heart, we trust you’ve got our back on this. The adjective visceral is another prime example. Something described as visceral has to do with the viscera—that is, the internal organs of the body (especially the heart, liver, or intestines). Yet even in the early years of its use, visceral often described emotional feeling, as the physical viscera were considered the seats of human passion, sentiment, et al. Though we no longer ascribe anger to, say, the spleen, we still use visceral to describe things that are felt deeply, as if in our physical bodies. In medical contexts the word still describes things related to our actual viscera.

Examples of visceral in a Sentence

In 1972 he began an address at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon, "Let me start off by saying this is not quite an honor, my being here. I haven't had too much regard for the Chamber of Commerce in my years in Boston. When the Celtics won 11 championships in 13 years, it was ignored in their own town." Arnold Jacob Auerbach, though paradoxical and highly idiosyncratic, was foremost a direct and visceral man. —Frank Deford, Sports Illustrated, 6 Nov. 2006

When you measure your waist circumference, you're indirectly measuring your visceral fat. —David Schardt, Nutrition Action, July/August 2006

But there are strong taboos I haven't anticipated. The most striking is the visceral dislike of rawness. In China, the consumption of raw foods was historically viewed as a barbarian habit, and most everything is still eaten cooked. —Fuchsia Dunlop, Gourmet, August 2005

One of the wonders of cooking is that the tiniest adjustment to what you are making, the addition of a single ingredient or the execution of a technique, can entirely change a dish and the visceral response you get from eating it. —Amanda Hesser, New York Times, 17 July 2002

Her visceral reaction was to curse at the other driver.

Recent Examples on the Web

Our writer, Peter Cameron, came up with this idea of a car accident that felt so visceral and exciting and cinematic. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 18 Oct. 2024

The 1971 film provided a template for a visceral, violent city. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 20 Sep. 2024

Then, there was the matter of the Grimms’ language—sparse, hectic, visceral, unfiltered. —Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024

With its combination of diaristic iPhone videos, news reports, hotel security footage from the night of Ito’s rape and various audio recordings, the film is a visceral testimony of survival and recourse. —Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1575, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing visceral

• visceral leishmaniasis

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Kids Definition

visceral

adjective

vis·​cer·​al ˈvis-ə-rəl 

1

: felt in or as if in the viscera

a visceral belief

2

: of, relating to, or being the viscera

visceral organs

viscerally

-rə-lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

visceral

adjective

vis·​cer·​al ˈvis-ə-rəl 

: of, relating to, or located on or among the viscera

visceral organs

compare parietal sense 1

viscerally

-rə-lē 

adverb