Receiving

How to spell receiving

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce receiving

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does receiving mean?

1. verbIn the process of being given, sent, or taken in something offered or delivered.

Receiving in a sentence

• She is receiving a steady stream of emails about the project.

• The charity is receiving generous donations this month.

Where does receiving come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb recipere, meaning 'to take back' or 'to take in', formed from the prefix re- ('back, again') and capere ('to take, to seize'). It travelled into English through the Old French reçeivre and the Anglo-Norman receivre during the 1200s and 1300s, keeping the sense of taking something offered or sent. The same capere root surfaces in a whole family of English words, including 'capture', 'accept', 'receipt', and 'capable', all carrying the idea of taking or holding. The present participle 'receiving' simply adds the -ing ending to 'receive'. The classic spelling trap lives in the middle: the letters follow the old 'i before e except after c' guidance, so the c is followed by 'ei', not 'ie', which is precisely where many fluent writers slip.

How the word is built

• re- (back)
• ceive (from Latin capere: to take)
• -ing (present participle suffix)