An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

1. Something → conceived in the → mind; a constituent of → thought.
   

2. The generic term for the members of a given → class of any sort, or the → term for the class itself. In other words, a unit of → knowledge abstracted from a set of characteristics or properties attributed to a class of objects, relations, or entities.

Etymology (EN): From M.L. conceptus “something conceived,” p.p. of concipere “to take in,” from → com- intensive prefix + cipere, combining form of capere “to take,” PIE base *kap- “to grasp;” cf. Skt. kapati “two handfuls;” Gk. kaptein “to swallow;” O.Ir. cacht “servant-girl,” literally “captive;” Goth. haban “have, hold;” O.E. habban “to have, hold;” Av. haf-, hap- “to keep, observe;” probably Mod.Pers. kapidan, qâpidan “to seize.”

Etymology (PE): Begert “seized, taken, caught; supposed, imagined,” from intensive prefix be- “to, for, in, on, with, by” (→ ad hoc)

• gert, from gerté, variant of gerefté “seized, taken,” from gereftan “to seize, take, catch; to suppose, imagine,” as in Laki gert, gerten, Lori gereta, Kurd. girtin “to take, seize, catch;”
  Abyâne-yi geratan, Ardestâni girette, Abuzeydâbâdi grata; Mid.Pers. griftan, Av./O.Pers. grab- “to take, to seize,” cf.
  Skt. grah-, grabh- “to seize, to take,” graha “seizing, holding, perceiving;” M.L.G. grabben “to grab;” Gothic greipan, O.H.G. grifan, Ger. greifen “to seize,” begreifen “to seize, understand,” Begriff “concept;” E. grab “to take or grasp suddenly;” PIE *g^hrebh- “to seize.”