# perceive

> English word · Verb · IPA /pəˈsiːv/ · frequency rank #10,903

## Definitions
1. To become aware of, through the physical senses, to see; to understand.
2. To interpret something in a particular way.

## Etymology
From Middle English perceyven, borrowed from Old French percevoir, perceveir, from Latin percipiō, past participle perceptus (“take hold of, obtain, receive, observe”), from per (“by, through”) + capiō (“to take”); see capable. Compare conceive, deceive, receive.

## Easily confused with
- **perceived** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/perceive-vs-perceived)
- **perceptive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/perceive-vs-perceptive)

## Common misspellings (11)
`eprceive`, `pecreive`, `percceive`, `perceiev`, `perceivve`, `percevie`, `percieve`, `perecive`, `perrceive`, `pperceive`, `preceive`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/perceive