When studying root words, there are often spelling variants for the same root. The primary root word cept: “taken,” for instance, present in the words concept and inception, has variant spellings of cap, cip, and ceiv. Cap, cip, and ceiv all mean “take” as well.
Let’s begin with the root word cap, which means “take.” If you are capable of doing something, you are able to “take” it into hand. The capacity of a box or other container is the volume of objects that can be “taken” into it. If you become incapacitated, you can no longer effectively “take” what life throws at you because you have become deprived of strength in some way. And when you capture something? You, of course, “take” it.
Cip is also a variant of cept, and also means “take.” A recipient of an award “takes” it back towards herself. An incipient project is “taken” in at its very beginning. Your principles are those moral standards that you always “take” first into consideration when deciding between right and wrong. And a disciple? She “takes” in knowledge.
Our last variant of cept is ceiv. The letter “v” is interchangeable with the letter “p” across languages. For instance, the words “concept” and “conceive” simply switch the “p” and the “v” consonants—they are really different forms of the same word. Some examples of English words with the morpheme ceiv include conceive (thoroughly “take” an idea), deceive (to “take” someone away from the truth by tricking her), perceive (to thoroughly “take” in one’s surroundings), and receive (to “take” back to oneself).
An easy mnemonic to remember that cept, cap, cip and ceiv all mean to “take” is the following: The recipients of exceptional caps “take” and receive them joyfully.
Now that you know that cept, cap, cip and ceiv all mean to “take,” you will never be “taken” unawares by words that encapsulate them!
- concept: thoroughly ‘taken’ or seized in one’s brain
- inception: ‘taken’ in at the beginning
- capable: able to ‘take’ something and work effectively with it
- capacity: amount that can be ‘taken’ in
- incapacitated: not able to ‘take’ in life’s arrows
- recipient: one who ‘takes’ something back towards herself
- incipient: ‘taken’ in at the beginning
- principle: moral standard ‘taken’ first
- disciple: one who ‘takes’ in knowledge
- conceive: thoroughly ‘take’ an idea
- deceive: ‘take’ someone away from the truth
- perceive: thoroughly ‘take’ in one’s surroundings
- receive: to ‘take’ back to oneself