Types of Synesthesia

Musical chords produce complex, blended taste experiences.

Songs or musical genres evoke overall taste impressions.

Sounds — music, voices, or ambient noise — produce automatic taste experiences on the tongue or palate.

Specific audio tones or pitches trigger distinct taste sensations.

The sound of a person's voice triggers specific taste sensations.

Sounds trigger involuntary motor impulses or movement sensations in the limbs or body, beyond simple startle reflexes.

Sounds produce involuntary sensations of movement or bodily motion, as if the body is being pulled, pushed, or rotated.

Certain sounds trigger olfactory experiences, causing the synesthete to smell specific scents in response to audio stimuli.

Musical sequences, scales, or progressions are assigned personality traits, genders, or emotional characters.

Music is perceived as having spatial structure — notes, chords, and melodies occupy specific positions or trajectories in three-dimensional space.

Hearing speech causes the listener to feel corresponding mouth and tongue movements on their own face.

Individual musical notes produce specific texture sensations on the skin or in the mind.

Sounds evoke physical touch sensations on the body, such as pressure, tingling, or texture on the skin.

Sounds evoke tactile texture sensations — a sound might feel smooth, gritty, or velvety.

Music produces sensations of warmth or cold that shift with key, tempo, or instrumentation.

Sounds trigger involuntary temperature sensations — warmth, cold, or thermal gradients on the body.

Musical chords produce blended or distinct color experiences that differ from individual note colors.

Musical key signatures (e.g., C major, F# minor) each have distinct, stable color associations.

Listening to music produces vivid color experiences, often with shapes and textures that shift with melody, harmony, and rhythm.

Musical modes (Dorian, Lydian, etc.) trigger specific color experiences.

Individual musical notes trigger specific, consistent color experiences.

Entire songs or musical genres evoke overall color impressions or palettes.

Sounds such as environmental noises, musical notes, or tones trigger the perception of colors, often seen in the mind's eye or projected into space.

Heard speech is simultaneously visualized as text, as if subtitles or a scrolling ticker are running in the visual field.

The tonal quality or timbre of instruments/voices produces specific color and shape experiences.

The sound of a person's voice — its timbre, pitch, and quality — triggers the perception of specific colors.

Abstract concepts trigger involuntary auditory experiences such as tones or ambient sounds.

Abstract concepts produce involuntary taste sensations.

Abstract concepts trigger automatic smell experiences.

Abstract ideas and concepts automatically produce color experiences.

Abstract concepts such as justice, time, or mathematics evoke specific geometric shapes.

Mathematical ideas, equations, or operations produce visual experiences such as colors, shapes, or spatial forms.

Emotional states produce involuntary auditory experiences such as tones, music, or ambient sounds.

Emotional states produce involuntary taste sensations.

Emotions trigger automatic olfactory experiences — specific scents tied to specific feelings.

Emotions trigger physical tactile sensations on the body beyond normal somatic responses.

Emotional states are accompanied by automatic color experiences — for example, anxiety might always appear orange or calm might appear blue.

Seeing someone else's emotional state produces involuntary auditory experiences.

Seeing someone else's emotional state produces involuntary taste sensations.

Observing another person's emotions triggers involuntary olfactory experiences.

Observing another person's emotions triggers tactile sensations on the observer's body.

Perceiving another person's emotional state triggers color experiences — an empathic form of synesthesia.

Letters or numbers are automatically perceived as odd or even, beyond their mathematical properties.

Letters or numbers trigger involuntary auditory experiences such as specific tones or sounds.

Seeing or thinking of specific letters or numbers produces automatic taste sensations.

Letters or numbers evoke specific olfactory experiences — distinct scents triggered by graphemes.

Letters, numbers, or ordered sequences are automatically assigned distinct personalities, genders, or emotional traits.

Numbers are automatically perceived as occupying specific positions in space, forming a stable mental map or number line with curves and angles.

Letters or numbers evoke tactile texture sensations — a letter might feel smooth, rough, or fuzzy.

Letters or numbers are associated with involuntary sensations of warmth or cold.

Letters and/or numbers automatically evoke the experience of specific colors. One of the most studied and well-documented forms of synesthesia.

Flavors produce involuntary auditory experiences — a taste might generate a specific pitch or tone.

Taste sensations produce tactile experiences such as pressure, texture, or tingling on the body.

Flavors trigger synesthetic temperature sensations unrelated to the actual temperature of the food.

Flavors experienced on the tongue evoke vivid color perceptions, sometimes filling the visual field.

Taste sensations produce the experience of specific geometric shapes, often felt in the hands or seen in the mind's eye.

Physical movement produces involuntary auditory experiences — hearing one's own motion.

Physical movement and bodily motion — such as swimming — produce vivid color experiences that shift with the type and intensity of movement.

Hearing or reading certain words triggers vivid, involuntary taste sensations in the mouth.

Hearing or reading certain words triggers involuntary movement sensations or motor impulses in the body.

Hearing or reading words triggers involuntary smell sensations.

Certain words evoke tactile sensations such as texture, pressure, or temperature on the skin.

Words or morphemes trigger automatic color experiences, distinct from individual grapheme colors.

Multiple sensory inputs converge to produce movement sensations, blending several modalities into kinesthetic experience.

Everyday objects are automatically assigned personalities, emotions, or social relationships.

Odors and scents automatically evoke auditory experiences such as tones, pitches, or ambient sounds.

Specific odors trigger distinct, synesthetic taste experiences beyond normal olfactory-gustatory interaction.

Odors evoke tactile sensations on the skin, such as pressure, tingling, or texture.

Scents produce involuntary temperature sensations such as warmth or cold.

Odors and scents trigger automatic color perceptions, often accompanied by shapes or spatial patterns.

Physical pain produces involuntary auditory experiences such as tones, buzzing, or ambient sounds.

Pain sensations trigger automatic taste experiences in the mouth.

Physical pain evokes involuntary olfactory experiences.

Physical pain sensations automatically trigger the perception of specific colors, sometimes with shapes or spatial extent.

Specific people are perceived as having characteristic colors, sometimes appearing as an aura or halo surrounding them.

Personality traits or characteristics of people trigger involuntary taste sensations.

Perceived personality traits produce automatic olfactory experiences.

Perceived personality traits of others automatically evoke specific color experiences.

Individual speech sounds (phonemes) trigger specific color experiences, distinct from grapheme-color synesthesia.

General ordered sequences (alphabets, months, numbered lists) automatically evoke color experiences.

Sexual arousal or orgasm triggers vivid, involuntary color and visual experiences.

Tactile sensations on the skin produce involuntary auditory experiences such as tones or ambient sounds.

Tactile sensations on the skin trigger specific, involuntary emotional responses distinct from normal affect.

Tactile sensations on the skin produce involuntary taste experiences in the mouth.

Physical touch triggers automatic olfactory experiences — specific scents evoked by skin contact.

Touch produces synesthetic temperature sensations unrelated to the actual thermal properties of the stimulus.

Physical touch on the skin produces color experiences, which may vary by location, pressure, or texture of the stimulus.

Sensations of hot or cold trigger involuntary auditory experiences such as tones or ambient sounds.

Sensations of hot or cold automatically evoke specific color experiences, mapping thermal input to visual perception.

Days of the week or months of the year are assigned distinct personalities, genders, or emotional traits.

The calendar year is experienced as a spatial form — a ring, oval, or path — with months occupying fixed positions around or near the body.

Sequences like days of the week, months, or years are experienced as having fixed spatial layouts — often rings, spirals, or paths surrounding the body.

Each day of the week is automatically associated with a specific, consistent color.

Each month of the year evokes a specific, stable color experience.

Seeing specific colors triggers auditory experiences — the reverse of chromesthesia.

Visual stimuli such as motion, flashes, or patterns produce auditory experiences — hearing what is seen.

Seeing specific colors triggers involuntary taste sensations.

Certain visual stimuli, such as shapes or colors, trigger involuntary taste sensations.

Specific colors produce automatic olfactory experiences.

Visual stimuli such as colors or shapes trigger involuntary olfactory experiences.

Specific colors are perceived as having distinct personalities, genders, or character traits.

Specific colors evoke tactile sensations such as texture, pressure, or temperature on the skin.

Seeing machines or objects being used, stressed, or damaged triggers empathic tactile sensations in the observer.

Observing someone else being touched causes the synesthete to feel the same touch sensation on their own body in the corresponding location.

Seeing objects, textures, or surfaces produces tactile sensations on the skin without physical contact.

Visual stimuli such as colors, patterns, or motion trigger temperature sensations.