conceive

verb con·ceive \ kən-ˈsēv \

|Updated on: 14 Aug 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: conceive in a Sentence

Definition of conceive

conceived; conceiving

transitive verb

1 a : to become pregnant with (young)

conceive a child

b : to cause to begin : originate

a project conceived by the company's founder

2 a : to take into one's mind

conceive a prejudice

b : to form a conception of : imagine

a badly conceived design

cleverly conceived teleplays

3 : to apprehend by reason or imagination : understand

unable to conceive his reasons

It is easy enough to conceive the notion that your island is a sort of fortress.
—Paul Theroux

4 : to have as an opinion

I cannot conceive that he acted alone.

intransitive verb

1 : to become pregnant

2 : to have a conception —usually used with of

conceives of death as emptiness

It is hard to conceive of all the work that must have been involved in starting off from scratch.
—Harold Fromm

—

conceiver

noun

See conceive defined for English-language learners

See conceive defined for kids

Examples of conceive in a Sentence

When the writer conceived this role, he had a specific actor in mind to play the part.
As conceived by the committee, the bill did not raise taxes.
a woman who has been unable to conceive
a woman who has been unable to conceive a child

Recent Examples of conceive from the Web

Together with public health researchers from Harvard, the companies launched a study last year to track 4,500 women aged 18-45 who are either trying to conceive or recently became pregnant.

— megan molteni, WIRED, "This Company Wants Your Fertility Data," 13 July 2018
But that was why it was conceived, to protect this part of the Arctic from drilling and the passages from Europe and Russia to America.

— andrew dansby, Houston Chronicle, "Ludovico: The piano’s quiet rock star talks about his first Houston concert," 11 July 2018
The next scene, featuring Johnston as a drag queen and Beatty as his friend, caps a beautifully conceived and performed Act 1.

— patti restivo, Howard County Times, "In 'Making Advances,' a staged revolution," 14 June 2018
Non-pharmacologic treatments are also available to those trying to conceive.

— samantha saltz, m.d., miamiherald, "Few discuss the emotional toll of struggling to conceive a child," 30 May 2018
To me, 30 seemed like the right age to start trying to conceive.

— kaelyn forde, Allure, "Why Women Are Making "Pre-Baby Bucket Lists" Filled With Goals to Accomplish Before Motherhood," 30 May 2018
But most of all, his repertoire is the art of the pass, as it has not been conceived and executed by a man of his size since Magic Johnson and the Showtime Los Angeles Lakers of more than a quarter-century ago.

— bill livingston, cleveland.com, "LeBron James and the toolbox, the repertoire, the sweep: Bill Livingston (photos)," 7 May 2018
Others were filmed mere seconds after they had been conceived.

— chris nashawaty, WSJ, "How the ‘Caddyshack’ Revolution Upended Hollywood," 19 Apr. 2018
Krebs said Kansas City Girls Preparatory Academy was conceived by Julie Tomasic, a 28-year veteran of the Kansas City Police Department.

— mará rose williams, kansascity, "Girls-only school planned for Kansas City has picked its first principal | The Kansas City Star," 9 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conceive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of conceive

Middle English, from Anglo-French conceivre, from Latin concipere to take in, conceive, from com- + capere to take — more at heave

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

conceive Synonyms

Phrases

pick up on;

Synonym Discussion of conceive

think, conceive, imagine, fancy, realize, envisage, envision mean to form an idea of. think implies the entrance of an idea into one's mind with or without deliberate consideration or reflection.