perception

[per-sep-shuhn]

noun

1. the act or faculty of perceiving, or apprehending by means of the senses or of the mind; cognition; understanding.

   Synonyms: recognition, sense, awareness

2. immediate or intuitive recognition or appreciation, as of moral, psychological, or aesthetic qualities; insight; intuition; discernment.

   an artist of rare perception.

3. the result or product of perceiving, as distinguished from the act of perceiving; percept.

4. Psychology.,  a single unified awareness derived from sensory processes while a stimulus is present.

5. Law.,  the taking into possession of rents, crops, profits, etc.

perception

/ pəˈsɛpʃən /

noun

1. the act or the effect of perceiving

2. insight or intuition gained by perceiving

3. the ability or capacity to perceive

4. way of perceiving; awareness or consciousness; view

   advertising affects the customer's perception of a product

5. the process by which an organism detects and interprets information from the external world by means of the sensory receptors

6. law the collection, receipt, or taking into possession of rents, crops, etc

Other Word Forms

• perceptional adjective
• nonperception noun
• nonperceptional adjective
• reperception noun
• self-perception noun
• unperceptional adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of perception¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English percepcioun, from Old French percepcïon, from Latin perceptiōn-, stem of perceptiō “comprehension,” literally, “a taking in”; percept, -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of perception¹

C15: from Latin perceptiō comprehension; see _perceive

Example Sentences

Determined to understand American perceptions of Japan, she worked in the office of Democrat Patricia Schroeder, a congresswoman known for her criticism of Japan.

From BBC

With partisan advantage, clashing perceptions of reality and revolutionary readings of the Constitution all in play, the rulings of the Supreme Court this year will reach far into American politics and culture.

From Salon

A panel of human rights experts at the UN subsequently called on Fifa and Uefa to suspend Israel's national team from international football, saying: "Sports must reject the perception that it is business as usual."

From BBC

Because LAHSA’s occupancy data is published online, nonprofits also raised concerns it gives the public an inaccurate perception at a time of heightened scrutiny over spending.

From Los Angeles Times

But it’s the kind of choice that’s easier to forgive in a movie so well-attuned to shifts in perception, one that dimensionalizes the problem of achieving clarity when leading a double life.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• approach 
• attention 
• attitude 
• awareness 
• concept 
• consciousness 
• feeling 
• image 
• impression 
• judgment 
• knowledge 
• notion 
• opinion 
• recognition 
• sense 
• taste 
• thought 
• viewpoint