para·sym·pa·thet·ic
ˌper-ə-ˌsim-pə-ˈthe-tik 
ˌpa-rə-
: of, relating to, being, or acting on the parasympathetic nervous system
1
: a parasympathetic nerve
Examples of parasympathetic in a Sentence
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K.j.s. “sunny” Anand, Time, 15 Oct. 2025
The sympathetic system is responsible for the fight-or-flight response, while the parasympathetic system activates the body’s rest-and-digest mode.
—Clarissa Brincat, Popular Science, 25 Sep. 2025
Erica Lamberg, Fox News, 8 Dec. 2024
Parasympathetic has two other states though- the rest and digest and according to the Polyvagal Theory, the ventral vagal branch of the parasympathetic which is social engagement.
—Womensmedia, Forbes, 15 Apr. 2021
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Adjective
Reading poetry out loud also requires us to pause for punctuation or line breaks, increasing our parasympathetic tone and dampening our hyperactive sympathetic nervous system.
—K.j.s. “sunny” Anand, Time, 15 Oct. 2025
The sympathetic system is responsible for the fight-or-flight response, while the parasympathetic system activates the body’s rest-and-digest mode.
—Clarissa Brincat, Popular Science, 25 Sep. 2025
Noun
There are two parts of the nervous system — the sympathetic and the parasympathetic, said Beth Oller, M.D., a family physician with Rooks County Health Center in Stockton, Kansas.
—Erica Lamberg, Fox News, 8 Dec. 2024
Parasympathetic has two other states though- the rest and digest and according to the Polyvagal Theory, the ventral vagal branch of the parasympathetic which is social engagement.
—Womensmedia, Forbes, 15 Apr. 2021
See All Example Sentences for parasympathetic
Cite this Entry
“Parasympathetic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parasympathetic. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
parasympathetic
1 of 2 adjective
para·sym·pa·thet·ic
ˌpar-ə-ˌsim-pə-ˈthet-ik
: of, relating to, being, or acting on the parasympathetic nervous system
parasympathetic fibers of the vascular wall
parasympathetic drugs
parasympathetic
2 of 2 noun1
: a parasympathetic nerve
this sacral group of parasympathetics supplies fibers to the external genitalia—A. C. Guyton
A. C. GuytonLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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