CONCEIVE

conceive

(verb) become pregnant; undergo conception; “She cannot conceive”; “My daughter was conceived in Christmas Day”

think, believe, consider, conceive

(verb) judge or regard; look upon; judge; “I think he is very smart”; “I believe her to be very smart”; “I think that he is her boyfriend”; “The racist conceives such people to be inferior”

gestate, conceive, conceptualize, conceptualise

(verb) have the idea for; “He conceived of a robot that would help paralyzed patients”; “This library was well conceived”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Verb

conceive (third-person singular simple present conceives, present participle conceiving, simple past and past participle conceived)

(transitive) To develop an idea; to form in the mind; to plan; to devise; to originate.

(transitive) To understand (someone).

(intransitive or transitive) To become pregnant (with).

Source: Wiktionary


Con*ceive", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Conceived; p. pr. & vb. n. Conceiving.] Etym: [OF. conzoivre, concever, conceveir, F. concevoir, fr. L. oncipere to take, to conceive; con- + capere to seize or take. See Capable, and cf. Conception.]

1. To receive into the womb and begin to breed; to begin the formation of the embryo of. She hath also conceived a son in her old age. Luke i. 36.

2. To form in the mind; to plan; to devise; to generate; to originate; as, to conceive a purpose, plan, hope. It was among the ruins of the Capitol that I first conceived the idea of a work which has amused and exercised near twenty years of my life. Gibbon. Conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood. Is. lix. 13.

3. To apprehend by reason or imagination; to take into the mind; to know; to imagine; to comprehend; to understand. "I conceive you." Hawthorne. O horror, horror, horror! Tongue nor heart Cannot conceive nor name thee! Shak. You will hardly conceive him to have been bred in the same climate. Swift.

Syn.

– To apprehend; imagine; suppose; understand; comprehend; believe; think.

Con*ceive", v. i.

1. To have an embryo or fetus formed in the womb; to breed; to become pregnant. A virgin shall conceive, and bear a son. Isa. vii. 14.

2. To have a conception, idea, or opinion; think; -- with of. Conceive of things clearly and distinctly in their own natures. I. Watts.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

29 March 2025

THOUGHTLESS

(adjective) without care or thought for others; “the thoughtless saying of a great princess on being informed that the people had no bread; ‘Let them eat cake’”


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Coffee Trivia

Raw coffee beans, soaked in water and spices, are chewed like candy in many parts of Africa.

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