perceptual
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of perceptual
1875–80; percept + -ual, on the model of concept, conceptual
Explanation
Something that you experience through your senses is perceptual. You'll have perceptual problems in school if you accidentally wear your sunglasses instead of your reading glasses. The adjective perceptual is all about perceiving, or sensing things. It's your perceptual ability that allows you to make sense of the world around you by seeing and hearing. In science, the various sensory systems (such as visual and auditory abilities) are known as perceptual systems. The Latin root is percipere, which means "gather or seize" and also "grasp with the mind."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At lower speeds, as in city traffic, you begin to hear the engine’s whispered revving in the perceptual background as it simultaneously propels the car and recharges the 22.7-kWh battery.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
Still, Keisha’s final monologue is devastating in its plea for perceptual equity, and daniels’ performance grounds the play in something urgently human.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 25, 2026
"They're not perceptual, we cannot listen to them, but they're easy to spot if you do a few mathematical operations."
From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2026
The high-bandwidth recording demonstrated in this study allows brain signals to be processed by advanced machine-learning and deep-learning algorithms, which can interpret complex intentions, perceptual experiences, and brain states.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 9, 2025
The game was called NeuroRacer, a three-dimensional driving game that asked the subjects to drive while simultaneously doing perceptual tasks, like recognizing objects around them.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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