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
The Times contacted more than two dozen of his critics and perceived enemies to ask about their level of concern.
—Taylor Robinson, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2025
Some staff members perceived the comments as discriminatory, the suit says.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025
In other words, the user perceives one full image with no blind spot in the middle.
—Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 18 Jan. 2025
In a 2022 study in the American Journal of Criminal Justice, researchers analyzed how victims described their interactions with scammers in order to identify patterns in both how the communication unfolded and how the victim perceived it.
—Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 18 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for perceive 
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Taylor Robinson, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2025
Some staff members perceived the comments as discriminatory, the suit says.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025
In other words, the user perceives one full image with no blind spot in the middle.
—Ben Coxworth, New Atlas, 18 Jan. 2025
In a 2022 study in the American Journal of Criminal Justice, researchers analyzed how victims described their interactions with scammers in order to identify patterns in both how the communication unfolded and how the victim perceived it.
—Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 18 Jan. 2025
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 Jan. 2025.
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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