concept

[ kon-sept ]

noun

1. a general notion or idea; conception.
2. an idea of something formed by mentally combining all its characteristics or particulars; a construct.
3. a directly conceived or intuited object of thought.

adjective

1. functioning as a prototype or model of new product or innovation:

   a concept car,

   a concept phone.

verb (used with object)

1. Informal. to develop a concept of; conceive:

   He concepted and produced three films.

concept

/ ˈkɒnsɛpt /

noun

1. an idea, esp an abstract idea

   the concepts of biology

2. philosophy a general idea or notion that corresponds to some class of entities and that consists of the characteristic or essential features of the class
3. philosophy
   1. the conjunction of all the characteristic features of something
   2. a theoretical construct within some theory
   3. a directly intuited object of thought
   4. the meaning of a predicate
4. modifier (of a product, esp a car) created as an exercise to demonstrate the technical skills and imagination of the designers, and not intended for mass production or sale

Word History and Origins

Origin of concept¹

First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin conceptum “something conceived,” originally neuter of conceptus “conceived,” past participle of concipere “to conceive,” equivalent to con- con- ( def ) + -cipere, combining form of capere “to seize”

Word History and Origins

Origin of concept¹

C16: from Latin conceptum something received or conceived, from concipere to take in, conceive

Example Sentences

However, Johnson noted that further research has shown that the same concept works equally well on natural gas and ammonia.

From TechCrunch

Vertical farming, a concept that has gained momentum in some Western markets, is still very new in India.

From TechCrunch

The company also wanted to propose a voice app idea to the audience and understand how they felt about the emerging technology concept.

From Search Engine Watch

The point of the Scottish experiment was to see if the concept was “logistically, environmentally and economically practical.”

From Fortune

“The Nikola One was an incredibly successful proof of concept,” the company said Monday.

From Fortune

One of the most persistent myths in American politics is the media-fueled concept of the lame duck.

From The Daily Beast

Think about it: Dodd-Frank was explicitly passed to drive a stake through the heart of the implicit concept of “too big to fail.”

From The Daily Beast

But Seligman never imagined how Mitchell might put the concept to work, in part because it was so ill-suited to that purpose.

From The Daily Beast

“The idea was to mess with the concept of Christmas,” recalled John Law, an original Cacophony member.

From The Daily Beast

Privilege can be a hard concept to get a handle on, especially for those who are immersed in it and reaping the benefits.

From The Daily Beast

To make the effort of articulation a vital impulse in response to a mental concept,—this is the object sought.

From Project Gutenberg

This is inconsistent with the ordinarily accepted concept of subspecies.

From Project Gutenberg

An underlying fallacy of Socialism is the concept that poverty or at least extreme poverty, can be banished from the world.

From Project Gutenberg

The concept is based upon an unfounded belief in the competence of the average man.

From Project Gutenberg

Their minds had had no concept of such horror, such relentless, racking pain.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• approach
• conception
• image
• notion
• perception
• theory
• thought
• view