perceived; perceiving; perceives
1
a
: to attain awareness or understanding of
b
: to regard as being such
was perceived as a loser
Examples of perceive in a Sentence
We perceive by means of the kaleidoscopic mirror of this life. This means that our ability to perceive is at once tyrannized by our expectations, and at war with them.
—
James Baldwin, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, 1985
Standing in the hallway just out of sight during this interview was Sarah. She held her baby on her hip and she listened. She perceived as no one in the family could the enormity of the misfortune.
—E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime, 1974
… and when they perceived her to be little struck with the duet they were so good as to play, they could do no more than make her a generous present of some of their least valued toys, and leave her to herself, while they adjourned to whatever might be the favourite holiday sport of the moment, making artificial flowers or wasting gold paper.
—Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, 1814
I thought I perceived a problem, but I wasn't sure.
perceived that it was going to be a nice day
James Baldwin, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, 1985
Standing in the hallway just out of sight during this interview was Sarah. She held her baby on her hip and she listened. She perceived as no one in the family could the enormity of the misfortune.
—E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime, 1974
… and when they perceived her to be little struck with the duet they were so good as to play, they could do no more than make her a generous present of some of their least valued toys, and leave her to herself, while they adjourned to whatever might be the favourite holiday sport of the moment, making artificial flowers or wasting gold paper.
—Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, 1814
I thought I perceived a problem, but I wasn't sure.
perceived that it was going to be a nice day
Recent Examples on the Web
Humans interacting with fellow humans would discern that waiting a long time to respond is going to be perceived as an unusual cadence when in discourse covering simple matters.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
Translation is something of the runt of the literary litter, more often perceived as grunt work than art work.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, 80 percent of Americans perceive Russia as an enemy, also consistent with the last two years, but up 15 percentage points from November 2021.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2024
Disputes such as this seem poised to become more common, and to potentially disrupt our ability to honestly perceive the icons of the past.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for perceive 
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Lance Eliot, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
Translation is something of the runt of the literary litter, more often perceived as grunt work than art work.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, 80 percent of Americans perceive Russia as an enemy, also consistent with the last two years, but up 15 percentage points from November 2021.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2024
Disputes such as this seem poised to become more common, and to potentially disrupt our ability to honestly perceive the icons of the past.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for perceive
Dictionary Entries Near perceive
Cite this Entry
“Perceive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/perceive. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
perceive
verb
per·ceive
pər-ˈsēv 
perceived; perceiving
2
: to become aware of through the senses and especially through sight
perceiver
noun
Medical Definition
perceive
transitive verb
per·ceive
pər-ˈsēv
perceived; perceiving
: to become aware of through the senses
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