perceptible

adjective

per·​cep·​ti·​ble pər-ˈsep-tə-bəl 

: capable of being perceived especially by the senses

a perceptible change in her tone

a barely perceptible light

perceptibility

pər-ˌsep-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

perceptibly

pər-ˈsep-tə-blē 

adverb

Did you know?

See here: if something is perceptible, you can perceive it (“to notice or become aware of”) or capture it with your senses. Those who are linguistically perceptive may wonder if perceptible comes to us from Latin. It does indeed. Arriving in English by way of Late Latin perceptibilis, perceptible comes from a form of percipere (“to perceive”), which comes from Latin capere (“to take”) and the prefix per- (“thoroughly”). Perceptible shares the capere part of its ancestry with a number of other English words related to seizing or being seized, including capture, captor, captivate, and even catch. An even closer relation of perceptible is perceptive: while perceptible describes what can be perceived, perceptive describes the one who does the perceiving. Perceptive was formed in English from perception, which is also from percipere.

Synonyms

• appreciable
• apprehensible
• detectable
• discernible
• discernable
• distinguishable
• palpable
• sensible

Choose the Right Synonym for perceptible

perceptible, sensible, palpable, tangible, appreciable, ponderable mean apprehensible as real or existent.

perceptible applies to what can be discerned by the senses often to a minimal extent.

a perceptible difference in sound to a careful listener

sensible applies to whatever is clearly apprehended through the senses or impresses itself strongly on the mind.

an abrupt, sensible drop in temperature

palpable applies either to what has physical substance or to what is obvious and unmistakable.

the tension in the air was almost palpable

tangible suggests what is capable of being handled or grasped both physically and mentally.

no tangible evidence of UFOs

appreciable applies to what is distinctly discernible by the senses or definitely measurable.

an appreciable increase in income

ponderable suggests having definitely measurable weight or importance.

exerted a ponderable influence on world events

Examples of perceptible in a Sentence

The sound was barely perceptible.

There was a perceptible change in the audience's mood.

Recent Examples on the Web

And the songs followed this logic, molting bit by bit, year over year, the changes barely perceptible in the moment, until a full evolution had occurred. —Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2024

But during ninety remarkably fast-talking minutes in New York—verbally, both candidates are speed demons—the Ohio senator J. D. Vance moved the narrative of the race in a small but perceptible way toward the Republican side. —Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 2 Oct. 2024

Improvements were barely perceptible to begin with but my doctor’s strategies proved helpful in time: a very dull and scrupulous diet, herbs for liver support, daily sweating, and crucially, charcoal tablets that bind with mould. —Melissa Kenny, refinery29.com, 30 Oct. 2024

Alma implored rescuers to save her father, mother and five siblings after their home was hit by an Israeli strike, her voice barely perceptible in the haunting video captured on that fateful day. —NBC News, 9 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

perceptible

adjective

per·​cep·​ti·​ble pər-ˈsep-tə-bəl 

: capable of being noticed or observed

a perceptible change

perceptibly

-blē 

adverb

Medical Definition

perceptible

adjective

per·​cep·​ti·​ble pər-ˈsep-tə-bəl 

: capable of being perceived especially by the senses

barely perceptible motion

sound perceptible by the human ear

perceptibility

-ˌsep-tə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun

plural perceptibilities

perceptibly

-blē 

adverb