conceive
/kənˈsiv/kuhn-SEEV
/kənˈsiv/kuhn-SEEV
Meaningto take in
Common meaning: to form in the mind
Other meanings: to become pregnant
- conwith, together; thoroughlySkeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), p. 127 · scan
- ceiveto grasp, takeLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 283 · scan
‘with, together’ + ‘to grasp, take’ → conceive
Journey through time
- con — Latin com- “with, together; thoroughly” (path traced)
- ceive — Latin capiō, cēpī, captum “to grasp, take” (path traced)
Parts join in Latin as concipere.
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Latin concipere, which Skeat analyses as com- ‘with, together; thoroughly’ + capere ‘to grasp, take’.
Roots
- capiō, cēpī, captum Latin “to grasp, take”
- concipere Latin “to take in”
Related words
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