receive

Receive is a verb with several related meanings centered on coming into possession of something offered, granted, or transmitted. It can mean to take possession of something given or sent, as in receiving a package or a gift. It can also mean to welcome, admit, or greet someone, for example at a door or into a group. A further sense is to obtain information, signals, or impressions, such as receiving a message or a radio signal. Intransitive uses exist as well, particularly in technical contexts, where an entity can “receive” something from another system; in such cases the passive voice is common: the data were received by the server.

Conjugation and forms: Receive is a regular verb in its conjugation. Present tense: I/you/we/they receive, he/she/it receives. Present participle: receiving. Past tense: received. Past participle: received.

Etymology and related terms: Receive comes from Middle English receiven, from Old French recevoir, from Latin recipere (re- “back” + capere “take”). Related words include receipt (proof of purchase or acknowledgment of receipt), recipient (a person who receives), and reception (the act or instance of receiving, or a place where people are received). The unrelated term recipe refers to instructions for preparing food and shares a near but distinct root.

Usage notes: Receive is broader than accept; it emphasizes being given, offered, or transmitted rather than just consenting. It is commonly used with tangible objects (a package), people (guests), information (news, data), and signals (radio, letters). Common collocations include receive a letter, receive guests, receive a signal, and be received with enthusiasm.