concept

American  

[kon-sept] / ˈkɒn sɛpt /

noun

concepts plural

1. a general notion or idea; conception.

2. an idea of something formed by mentally combining all its characteristics or particulars; a construct.

3. a directly conceived or intuited object of thought.

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adjective

1. functioning as a prototype or model of new product or innovation.

   a concept car,

   a concept phone.

verb (used with object)

1. Informal. to develop a concept of; conceive.

   He concepted and produced three films.

concept British  

/ ˈkɒnsɛpt /

noun

1. an idea, esp an abstract idea

   the concepts of biology

2. philosophy a general idea or notion that corresponds to some class of entities and that consists of the characteristic or essential features of the class

3. philosophy

   1. the conjunction of all the characteristic features of something

   2. a theoretical construct within some theory

   3. a directly intuited object of thought

   4. the meaning of a predicate

4. (modifier) (of a product, esp a car) created as an exercise to demonstrate the technical skills and imagination of the designers, and not intended for mass production or sale

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• concepts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of concept

First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin conceptum “something conceived,” originally neuter of conceptus “conceived,” past participle of concipere “to conceive,” equivalent to con- con- ( def. ) + -cipere, combining form of capere “to seize”

Explanation

A concept is a thought or idea. If you're redecorating your bedroom, you might want to start with a concept, such as "flower garden" or "outer space." It's a general idea about a thing or group of things, derived from specific instances or occurrences. It often applies to a theoretical idea in science: Einstein's contribution to the concept of relativity. Concept was borrowed from Late Latin conceptus, from Latin concipere "to take in, conceive, receive." A concept is an idea conceived in the mind. The original meaning of the verb conceive was to take sperm into the womb, and by a later extension of meaning, to take an idea into the mind.

Example Sentences

Yet, Fire Island as a concept produces nothing more than a toy monkey clanging its cymbals in my brain.

From Salon • Jun. 18, 2026

All of that counts as a foreign concept in Britain, where the job of England manager has traditionally been to identify the best players and build around them.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 17, 2026

Deitch moved to Los Angeles in 2010 to helm the Museum of Contemporary Art, and began exploring how to revive the concept here.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2026

The concept may also have applications in robotics.

From Science Daily • Jun. 15, 2026

The one in The Wiz is yellow, but same concept, right?

From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone

Related Words

• approach
• conception
• image
• notion
• perception
• theory
• thought
• view