sympathetic nervous system
noun
: the part of the autonomic nervous system that contains chiefly adrenergic fibers and tends to depress secretion, decrease the tone and contractility of smooth muscle, and increase heart rate compare parasympathetic nervous system
Examples of sympathetic nervous system in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The procedure involves injecting a local anesthetic into a cluster of nerves in the neck that could potentially regulate the sympathetic nervous system.
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Matt Emma, USA Today, 29 Oct. 2025
So, the body uses yet another process, called functional sympatholysis, to override the sympathetic nervous system where appropriate.
—Richard A. Lovett, Outside, 19 Oct. 2025
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
When something stressful happens, the sympathetic nervous system activates to figure out how to respond; cortisol release is part of this response.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sympathetic nervous system
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Matt Emma, USA Today, 29 Oct. 2025
So, the body uses yet another process, called functional sympatholysis, to override the sympathetic nervous system where appropriate.
—Richard A. Lovett, Outside, 19 Oct. 2025
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
When something stressful happens, the sympathetic nervous system activates to figure out how to respond; cortisol release is part of this response.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sympathetic nervous system
Cite this Entry
“Sympathetic nervous system.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sympathetic%20nervous%20system. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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