apperceive

[ ap-er-seev ]

/ ˌæp ərˈsiv /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR apperceive ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ap·per·ceived, ap·per·ceiv·ing. Psychology.

to have conscious perception of; comprehend.

to comprehend (a new idea) by assimilation with the sum of one's previous knowledge and experience.

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“Compliment” and “complement” had a shared meaning a long time ago, but today they are no longer interchangeable.

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Origin of apperceive

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English word from Old French word aperceivre. See ap-¹, perceive

OTHER WORDS FROM apperceive

un·ap·per·ceived, adjective

Words nearby apperceive

appentice, appenzell, appenzell ausser rhoden, appenzell inner rhoden, appenzeller, apperceive, apperception, appersonation, appertain, appestat, appetence

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for apperceive

In this manner we accept the forms imposed upon us by utility, and train ourselves to apperceive their potential beauty.
The Sense of Beauty|George Santayana
From my perception, then, of hoof or sound I apperceive cow.
Applied Psychology for Nurses|Mary F. Porter
Spirits say they know such by their coldness, and that when they apperceive the cold they depart from them.
Earths In Our Solar System Which Are Called Planets, and Earths In The Starry Heaven Their Inhabitants, And The Spirits And Angels There|Emanuel Swedenborg
The housewife may apperceive old rags as something to be thrown away; a ragpicker, as something to be gathered up.
The Psychology of Salesmanship|William Walker Atkinson

On the contrary, they apperceive every experience and assign it to its place.
The Meaning of Truth|William James

British Dictionary definitions for apperceive

apperceive

/ (ˌæpəˈsiːv) /

verb (tr)

to be aware of perceiving

psychol to comprehend by assimilating (a perception) to ideas already in the mind

Word Origin for apperceive

C19: from Old French aperceveir, from Latin percipere to perceive

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

apperceive

verb (used with object), ap·per·ceived, ap·per·ceiv·ing. Psychology.

QUIZZES

CAN YOU ACE THIS QUIZ ABOUT “COMPLIMENT” VS. “COMPLEMENT”?

Origin of apperceive

OTHER WORDS FROM apperceive

Words nearby apperceive

Words related to apperceive

Example sentences from the Web for apperceive

British Dictionary definitions for apperceive

verb (tr)

Word Origin for apperceive