Perçu

Perçu is the past participle of the French verb percevoir, meaning to perceive, realize, or receive. In contemporary French, it is used both in compound verb tenses and as an adjective meaning “perceived” or “received.” It can describe sensory information, impressions or data that have been sensed, as well as amounts or incomes that have been collected or earned. Examples include une impression perçue (a perceived impression), des revenus perçus (revenue received), or des impôts perçus (taxes collected).

Etymology and usage context

Perçu derives from the Latin percipere, via the French verb percevoir. As a past participle, it agrees in gender and number with a preceding direct object in compound tenses formed with the auxiliary avoir. Thus, you can have: le son perçu (the perceived sound), les données perçues (the perceived data), or, in finance, les impôts perçus (the taxes collected).

Grammatical notes

In gender- and number-sensitive contexts, the forms are perceived as perçu (masculine singular), perçue (feminine singular), perçus (masculine plural), and perçues (feminine plural). When used as an adjective, its meaning aligns with the noun it modifies: a perceived phenomenon, a perceived risk, or a received payment. In literary or philosophical writing, perceived or sensory content is a common usage, while in administrative or financial language, perçu frequently appears in phrases for income, taxes, or receipts.

See also

Percevoir, perception, percept, perception in philosophy, and income or revenue terminology using the verb percevoir.