Definition
Plain language
Having to do with touch and handling things with your hands.
As stated in the literature
Pertaining to the sense of touch and physical manipulation; in concept norms, a rating of how strongly an object is experienced through grasping or handling.
Also called: haptics
Why it matters: It captures a dimension of how we know objects that pure images or words leave out, which matters for anything meant to handle or describe physical things.
For example, a hammer scores high on touch because you understand it mainly by gripping and swinging it, while a rainbow scores low.
Heard on the show
“Whether "haptic," as scored by English speakers, even means the same thing across cultures — the paper doesn't resolve that.”Episode 209 — How 2.6 Billion Doodles Exposed the Culture Words Quietly Delete