perceive
Americanverb (used with object)
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perceives,
present (3rd person singular)
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perceived,
past participle, past
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perceiving
present participle
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to become aware of, know, or identify by means of the senses.
I perceived an object looming through the mist.
- Synonyms:
- distinguish, descry, observe, discover, note
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to recognize, discern, envision, or understand: This is a nice idea but I perceive difficulties in putting it into practice.
I perceive a note of sarcasm in your voice.
This is a nice idea but I perceive difficulties in putting it into practice.
verb
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to become aware of (something) through the senses, esp the sight; recognize or observe
-
(tr; may take a clause as object) to come to comprehend; grasp
Synonym Usage
See notice.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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perceivabilitynoun
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perceivernoun
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perceivingnessnoun
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reperceiveverb (used with object)
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nonperceivingadjective
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perceivableadjective
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self-perceivingadjective
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unperceivingadjective
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perceivablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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perceivesimple
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perceivessimple
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have perceivedperfect
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has perceivedperfect
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am perceivingprogressive
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are perceivingprogressive
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is perceivingprogressive
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have been perceivingperfect progressive
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has been perceivingperfect progressive
Past
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perceivedsimple
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had perceivedperfect
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was perceivingprogressive
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were perceivingprogressive
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had been perceivingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of perceive
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English perceiven, from unattested Anglo-French perceivre, for perçoivre, from Latin percipere “to lay hold of, grasp,” equivalent to per- per- + -cipere, combining form of capere “to take”
Explanation
When we perceive something, we become aware of or notice it. Sometimes we perceive things by using our senses of sight, hearing, and smell. Or we can use our mind to perceive things, which means that we are able to recognize or understand them. We can also perceive a person or thing as having certain qualities: Do you perceive yourself as a good student? The Latin root percipere means "to receive, understand," from the prefix per- "thoroughly" plus capere "to seize, take."
Vocabulary lists containing perceive
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Metamorphosis
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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.
See Examples For:
In recent years, streaming’s popularity has significantly impacted the genre and how audiences perceive it.
From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2026
The surprising behavior raises new questions about how birds perceive the people around them.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026
“We perceive these two as investing more heavily and consistently in the U.S. beverage market to drive revenue growth, while PepsiCo often describes cost-cutting and margin expansion as significant priorities,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026
“The way I perceive and think about these issues in our current social context colors my reading and recounting of history.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
But he would not be so bad—nor would he become so successful, a scholarship boy—if he did not accurately perceive that the best synonym for primary ‘education’ is ‘imitation.’
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
The key problem remains that no one perceives any benefit in moving first.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
An additional vulnerability Panigirtzoglou perceives is the assets under management of leveraged memory ETFs, relative to the market capitalization of the underlying stocks.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026
Both Cruise and Pitt have a death grip on their A-List prestige, hyper-aware of how much the world perceives and enjoys their work.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
Our bodies rely on three main sensory inputs to show that we're moving, which come from what we see, what our inner ear's balance system perceives, and what fibres in our body sense, he says.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
She loves that she thinks she’s in control of my involvement with Jeremy, and she’ll actually have it out with Lauren if she perceives interference.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
This was perceived as a dig against Eduardo, mockingly nicknamed "little banana."
From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026
To qualify as folly for this inquiry, the policy adopted must meet three criteria: it must have been perceived as counter-productive in its own time, not merely by hindsight .
From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2026
Companies that pay large dividends tend to have solid operating cash flows and strong balance sheets, even if they are perceived to be more stodgy than the latest hot tech stock.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026
Meanwhile, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 11.89 points, or 0.02%, to 52867.98, as investors sought investments perceived to be safer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Emma listened, and looked, and soon perceived that Frank Churchill’s state might be best defined by the expressive phrase of being out of humour.
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
That’s not quite how others are perceiving this “symbol.”
From Slate ● Sep. 9, 2026
"Since dietary decisions are strongly influenced by reward assessment and physical state, targeted breath regulation could also play a role in consciously perceiving and more effectively managing eating behavior," Park summarizes for future research activities.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
“Raging against the second half of your life, raging against how the world’s perceiving you, and how the world looks at you at a certain age.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
The consultation is looking into how this would be determined, and is considering factors such as people living together, sharing finances and others perceiving them as a couple.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Children’s knowledge of how to use a tool could be a result of their experience with the tool; alternatively, it could be a result of their perceiving the tool’s affordances from shape and manipulability cues.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
