How to Use Subconscious vs. unconscious Correctly

It appears that unconscious refers to a specific physiological state, i.e., when someone is in a coma. Whereas subconscious refers to not being actively aware ... Grammarist Advertisement Tweet UsageSubconsciousvs.unconscious Subconsciousandunconsciousaresynonymswhenthey’reinformaladjectivesmeaning occurringintheabsenceofawarenessorthought.Forexample,tosaythatkittensmakeyoufeelanxiousonasubconsciouslevelisthesameassayingtheymakeyoufeelanxiousonanunconsciouslevel.But unconscious isthemorescientificterm,andit’stheusualchoiceinscienceandmedicine.Subconscious isfairlycommoninquasi-scientificwriting,butitsdefinitionisfuzzy,anditoftensignalsthatthewriterlacksrealexpertise.   Ofcourse,wheretheadjectivemeans lackingconsciousness, unconscious isalwaystheappropriateword.ExamplesIntheseexamples,subconsciousandunconsciousaremoreorlessinterchangeable: Advertisement Suchnames,hesaid,speaktoasubconscious,socialtrendtoraiseboysasgentlerbeings.[EdmontonJournal]Manyyoungpeopletodaygraspthat,atleastonanunconsciouslevel.[LosAngelesTimes]Heplundersthepowersofthesubconscioustorevealcleverlittletricksyoucanuse.[DailyMail]Whatyou’redoingwiththistechniqueisworkingwiththeunconsciousmind,whichisextraordinarilypowerfulandsometimesverystupid.[GrandJunctionFreePress(linknowdead)]Andintheseinstances, subconscious wouldnotworkinplaceof unconscious:Anunconsciousmanisstrappedtoastretcher.[Politico]Anaesthesiaisdividedintogeneral,wherethepatientisunconscious,andlocal,whereonlyapartofthebodyisanaesthetised. [Mirror] Comments donnalibra says January13,2015at6:24pm Itappearsthatunconsciousreferstoaspecificphysiologicalstate,i.e.,whensomeoneisinacoma.Whereassubconsciousreferstonotbeingactivelyawareofone’sthoughts.Therefore,Ireallydon’tthinkthesewordsaresynonymous. anony123 says June12,2015at1:36pm Nope,mostpeopleusesubconsciouswhentheymeanunconscious.Botharepsychologicalterms.SigmundFreudwroteabouttheunconsciousmindandlevelsofconsciousness,PierreJanetcoinedthetermsubconscious. ZeaL says October12,2015at5:47am Unconscious:Noun—thepartofthemindthatisinaccessibletotheconsciousmindbutthataffectsbehaviorandemotions. ADJ—Notconscious. Advertisement checkoutourtwitter! Advertisement Signupforournewsletter Leavethisfieldemptyifyou'rehuman: RecentPosts Roadhog Fraudvsfraught Reefvswreath Weighin There’snotimelikethepresent Buttonhole Syndicatevssyndicate Heavy-handed Silenceisgolden Rahvsraw index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Grammar Usage Wordsandphrases Spelling Style Glossary Ourfavorites Affectvs.effect Thanvs.then Canceledvs.cancelled Centervs.centre Realisevs.realize Alumna,alumnae,alumni,alumnus Itsvs.it’s Favoritevs.favourite Practicevs.practise Adviservs.advisor Fishvs.fishes Learnedvs.learnt Grayvs.grey Resources ~~~ AboutGrammarist Contact|Privacypolicy|Home ©Copyright2009-2014Grammarist