conceived; conceiving
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
Paul Theroux4
: to have as an opinion
I cannot conceive that he acted alone.
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
Harold Fromm
conceiver
noun
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 on the Web
Marci Shelman and Tristan Dederscheck, from Blackfoot, Idaho, tried to have a baby for three years but struggled to conceive naturally.
—Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 28 Dec. 2025
The debate also drew attention to the limits of JWST, which was conceived before the discovery of exoplanets and is now being pushed to the edge of its capabilities to study one.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 26 Dec. 2025
Making this feels like the most child-like fantasy movie that Kevin and I could have ever conceived of.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 25 Dec. 2025
Instead, like many other same-sex couples, Berton and Higginbotham, who live in Santa Clara County, had to pay $45,000 out of pocket to conceive while heterosexual colleagues with the same insurance plan had many of those costs covered.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 23 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for conceive
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Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 28 Dec. 2025
The debate also drew attention to the limits of JWST, which was conceived before the discovery of exoplanets and is now being pushed to the edge of its capabilities to study one.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 26 Dec. 2025
Making this feels like the most child-like fantasy movie that Kevin and I could have ever conceived of.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 25 Dec. 2025
Instead, like many other same-sex couples, Berton and Higginbotham, who live in Santa Clara County, had to pay $45,000 out of pocket to conceive while heterosexual colleagues with the same insurance plan had many of those costs covered.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 23 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for conceive
Cite this Entry
“Conceive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conceive. Accessed 31 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
conceive
verb
con·ceive
kən-ˈsēv 
conceived; conceiving
1
: to become pregnant or pregnant with
conceive a child
2
a
: to take into the mind
conceived a liking for the singer
b
: to form an idea of : imagine
conceive a new design
3
: to have as an opinion : think
conceived of her as a genius
conceivable
adjective
-ˈsē-və-bəl
conceivably
adverb
-blē
conceiver
noun
Medical Definition
conceive
verb
con·ceive
kən-ˈsēv
conceived; conceiving
: to become pregnant with (young)
: to become pregnant
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