perçus

Perçus is the masculine plural past participle of percevoir, the French verb meaning to perceive, sense, or understand. It is most commonly used as an adjective meaning “perceived” and appears in compound verb forms.

Grammatical notes are important for its agreement. When used with the auxiliary avoir, the participle generally does not agree with the subject, but it may agree with a preceding direct object. For example: les signes qu’ils ont perçus (the signs they perceived) shows agreement with the preceding object “signes.” If the direct object is feminine or plural feminine and precedes the participle, the form changes accordingly (par exemple, les idées qu’elles ont perçues). In passive voice or with a form of être, the participle agrees with the subject: ces signaux ont été perçus.

Usage and nuance. Perçus functions primarily as an adjective (des phénomènes perçus, des éléments perçus) to describe things that have been sensed or detected. It is less common as a standalone noun; when a noun is needed to refer to what has been perceived, French tends to use terms such as perception or objets perçus rather than a bare “perçus.”

Etymology. Perçus derives from percevoir, itself from Latin percipere, reflecting the sense of taking in or becoming aware of something.

In summary, perçus marks perceived items or states when used as an adjective, with standard agreement rules tied to the surrounding direct object or the passive construction.