per·cep·tion

[per-sep-shuhn]
noun
1.
the act or faculty of perceiving, or apprehending by means of the senses or of the mind; cognition; understanding.
2.
immediate or intuitive recognition or appreciation, as of moral, psychological, or aesthetic qualities; insight; intuition; discernment: an artist of rare perception.
3.
the result or product of perceiving, as distinguished from the act of perceiving; percept.
4.
Psychology. a single unified awareness derived from sensory processes while a stimulus is present.
5.
Law. the taking into possession of rents, crops, profits, etc.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English percepcioun (< Old French percepcïon) < Latin perceptiōn- (stem of perceptiō) comprehension, literally, a taking in. See percept, -ion

Related forms
per·cep·tion·al, adjective
non·per·cep·tion, noun
non·per·cep·tion·al, adjective
re·per·cep·tion, noun
self-per·cep·tion, noun
un·per·cep·tion·al, adjective

Synonyms
1. awareness, sense, recognition.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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00:10
Perception is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
perception (pəˈsɛpʃən) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  the act or the effect of perceiving
2.  insight or intuition gained by perceiving
3.  the ability or capacity to perceive
4.  way of perceiving; awareness or consciousness; view: advertising affects the customer's perception of a product
5.  the process by which an organism detects and interprets information from the external world by means of the sensory receptors
6.  law the collection, receipt, or taking into possession of rents, crops, etc
 
[C15: from Latin perceptiō comprehension; see perceive]
 
per'ceptional
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

perception
late 15c., "receiving, collection," from L. perceptionem (nom. perceptio) "perception, apprehension, a taking," from percipere "perceive" (see perceive). First used in the more literal sense of the L. word; in secondary sense, "the taking cognizance of," it is recorded
in English from 1610s. Meaning "intuitive or direct recognition of some innate quality" is from 1827.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

perception per·cep·tion (pər-sěp'shən)
n.

  1. The process, act, or faculty of perceiving.

  2. Recognition and interpretation of sensory stimuli based chiefly on memory.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Example sentences
For some, visual movement triggers a perception of sound.
But first must come the recognition of a certain admirable mastery and the
  perception of some benefit in recognizing it.
The perception should therefore not be that frozen yogurt is healthy, but
  rather that it's healthier.
Our hyperawareness of it shapes our perception not only of others but of
  ourselves as well.
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