What term describes heat that causes a change in temperature without a change in state?

The term that describes heat causing a change in temperature without a change in state is sensible heat. Sensible heat is the energy required to increase the temperature of a substance without altering its phase. When sensible heat is added to a substance, such as heating water, the temperature rises, reflecting a change in thermal energy without transitioning to a different state, for example, from liquid to gas.

Latent heat, in contrast, is the heat absorbed or released during a phase change, such as when ice melts into water or when water vaporizes into steam. This type of heat is not associated with a temperature change in the substance itself during the phase transition.

Specific heat capacity refers to the amount of heat required to change the temperature of a unit mass of a substance by one degree Celsius. While it is related to the concept of sensible heat, it defines a property of materials rather than the process of heat transfer that changes temperature.

Thermal expansion involves the tendency of matter to change its volume in response to a change in temperature. While related to temperature changes, it does not specifically refer to the heat involved in that process.

Thus, sensible heat is the precise term that captures the idea of heat contributing to temperature changes without any phase changes occurring in the substance.