a faculty of the soul, whereby it perceives external objects, by means of the impressions they make on certain organs of the body. These organs of sensation are commonly reckoned five, viz. the eye, whereby we see objects; the ear, which enables us to hear sounds; the nose, by which we receive the ideas of different smells; the palate, by which we judge of tastes; and the cutis, or skin, which enables us to feel the different forms, hardnesses, or softnesses of bodies. See ANATOMY, p. 289, 293, 295, 303; OPTICS, passim; and PNEUMATICS.