Received is the correct spelling. Recieved is a misspelling in standard English. The word comes from receive, and its past tense is formed by keeping the final e and adding d: receive + d = received.
The familiar “i before e, except after c” rhyme can help you remember the spelling, but it does not work for every English word.
Which Is Correct?
Use received when you mean that someone got, accepted, or was given something.
- Correct: I received your email this morning.
- Incorrect: I recieved your email this morning.
- Correct: The office received the documents yesterday.
- Incorrect: The office recieved the documents yesterday.
The spelling is the same in British, American, and Australian English. There is no standard regional version in which recieved is correct.
If you remember only one thing, remember this: receive becomes received by adding d, not by changing the order of i and e.
Why Is Received Spelled With Ei?
The spelling comes from the established form of the verb receive. The word entered English through French, ultimately tracing back to the Latin verb recipere, meaning to take back, take in, or accept.
Its spelling is also a useful example of why English spelling cannot always be predicted from a single rhyme.
The familiar rule says “i before e, except after c.” In received, the c comes before ei, so the word fits the exception in the rhyme.
However, the rhyme is a memory aid, not a complete explanation of English spelling history. Words have entered English from different languages and have changed over time.
Their spellings reflect those histories, pronunciation patterns, and changes in word forms.
For everyday writing, you do not need to memorize every historical detail. Learning receive, received, receiving, and receipt together is a more practical way to remember the pattern.
The Difference Between Received and Recieved
| Spelling | Is it correct? | Meaning or use |
|---|---|---|
| Received | Yes | Past tense and past participle of receive |
| Recieved | No | A misspelling of received |
Here are the two main ways to use the correct word:
Simple past: “I received your message yesterday.”
Present perfect: “I have received your message.”
Both sentences are correct. The first describes a past event, while the second connects the receipt of the message to the present situation.
How to Form Received, Receives, and Receiving
The verb receive has several forms. The middle spelling pattern remains the same, but the ending changes according to the sentence.
| Form | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Receive | Base form | I receive weekly updates. |
| Receives | Present tense with he, she, or it | She receives several emails a day. |
| Received | Past tense | He received the package on Monday. |
| Received | Past participle | We have received your application. |
| Receiving | -ing form | We are receiving applications now. |
One detail causes particular confusion: the final e behaves differently with different endings.
- Receive + d = received. Keep the final e and add d.
- Receive − e + ing = receiving. Drop the final e before adding -ing.
Therefore, received and receiving are correct, while recievd and receiveing are not.
What Does Received Mean?
The meaning of received depends on the sentence. It is the past tense and past participle of receive, which can refer to getting something, accepting it, or experiencing an action.
To get something
This is the most common meaning.
- I received a birthday card from my friend.
- She received a reply to her application.
- We received your order this afternoon.
To accept or take delivery of something
The word often appears in business, shipping, and payment updates.
- The warehouse received the shipment.
- The company received the payment on Friday.
- The school received the signed form.
To experience a response or action
Received can also describe the reaction to an idea, performance, or proposal.
- The proposal received strong support.
- The speaker received a warm welcome.
- Her suggestion received mixed reactions.
To mean generally accepted
In some contexts, received is used as an adjective meaning widely accepted or established.
- The book challenges received wisdom.
- This is the received interpretation of the passage.
The spelling stays received in every use.
Does “I Before E, Except After C” Always Work?
No. The familiar rhyme is useful, but it has many exceptions. Its history and the research into its accuracy show why it should not be treated as a rule without exceptions.
The rhyme appears in spelling books from 1866
The familiar spelling rule was already appearing in English grammar and spelling textbooks in the nineteenth century. A 2017 report in The Washington Post notes its appearance in James Stuart Laurie’s Manual of English Spelling, published in 1866.
The rhyme is memorable because it gives learners a quick way to guess the order of two letters. But a rule can be easy to remember without being reliable in every case.
What a 350,000-word analysis found
Nathan Cunningham, a statistician associated with the University of Warwick, tested the rhyme using a list of about 350,000 English words. As reported by The Washington Post in 2017, roughly three-quarters of words containing an ie or ei pair used ie.
That result supports the first part of the rhyme: i often comes before e.
The second part is much less reliable. In Cunningham’s analysis, words spelled cie outnumbered words spelled cei by about three to one. In other words, even after c, ie was more common than ei in the word list he tested.
These figures describe that particular analysis; they are not a count of every possible English word. Still, they show why the “except after c” part cannot be treated as a dependable universal rule.
What a 1932 study found
In a 1932 article titled Four Spelling Rules, published in The Elementary School Journal, Leonard B. Wheat examined spelling rules and word lists used in American elementary-school spelling books.
The study covered 3,876 words. Of those, 128 contained ie or ei. Wheat reported that 83 followed the “i before e” part of the rule, six required the “except after c” clause, and 12 fitted the additional condition about the sound being like a, as in neighbor and weigh.
The six words are easy to misinterpret. They were the words in that sample that needed the “except after c” clause, not the only words for which the entire rhyme worked.
Wheat also identified words in which the two letters appeared in separate syllables. That distinction matters because a spelling rhyme about a letter pair is not always relevant when the letters represent separate sounds.
His findings show that the rhyme simplifies a much messier spelling system. It may help with familiar words, but learning each word’s spelling remains important.
Does adding a sound condition help?
Some spelling guides suggest narrowing the rhyme to combinations pronounced with a long ee sound. Robert Allen’s 2008 edition of Pocket Fowler’s Modern English Usage proposed extending the rule in this way.
That qualification makes the rhyme more useful for words such as receive and deceive. It still does not cover every word: seize and weird, for example, remain familiar challenges to the simple pattern.
The practical takeaway is not to discard every spelling rule. It is to use this one as a clue rather than a guarantee.
Words That Challenge the Spelling Rule
English has several well-known words that show the limits of “i before e, except after c.”
With ei but no c
- Weird: The correct spelling is weird, not wierd. A linguistic discussion published by Cambridge University Press notes that the word’s unusual spelling may reflect Scottish influence.
- Seize: The correct spelling is seize, despite the ei sequence.
- Neither and either: Both use ei. Their pronunciation varies among English speakers.
- Leisure: This word also uses ei.
- Protein and caffeine: These are further examples that do not fit the simple rhyme neatly.
Words with ie after c
Words such as ancient, conscience, and efficiency contain cie. In many of these cases, the spelling is connected to the way the word is formed, rather than being a straightforward test of the rhyme.
Why science is different
Science, species, and society may look like direct exceptions at first glance. However, the i and e do not simply form the same adjacent vowel combination found in receive. In science, for example, the letters represent separate sounds.
This is why it is important to distinguish a genuine exception from a word in which the rhyme does not apply cleanly in the first place.
Received and Receipt: Why the P Is Silent
Receipt is a useful word to learn alongside received. Both contain cei, but receipt has a silent p.
According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, receipt appeared in English in the late fourteenth century as receit. It came through Anglo-French or Old North French forms related to recete and ultimately to Latin recepta.
The p began to return to the English spelling after about 1500 under the influence of Latin. The pronunciation did not change to include a p sound.
This history helps explain why the spelling looks different from the way the word sounds. It also gives you another spelling to remember in the same word family:
- receive
- received
- receiving
- receipt
Do not write reciept. The correct spelling is receipt.
Using Received in Emails and Professional Writing
Received is common in emails, order updates, business correspondence, and customer service messages. The important point is to use it for what actually happened.
Confirming that something arrived
You can write:
- I received your email this morning.
- We have received your application.
- This is to confirm that we received your payment.
These sentences confirm receipt without suggesting that the sender’s request has been accepted or approved.
Received does not mean approved
Received means something arrived or was obtained. It does not automatically mean that anyone reviewed it, accepted it, or approved it.
Compare these sentences:
- “We received your application.” The application arrived.
- “We reviewed your application.” Someone examined it.
- “Your application was approved.” A decision was made to accept it.
This distinction matters in professional communication. If you have only received a document, do not tell the sender it has been approved.
Should you write “received” or “have received”?
Both are correct, but they serve slightly different purposes.
Use the simple past when the event happened at a stated time:
“I received your email yesterday.”
Use the present perfect when the receipt matters now or the time is not specified:
“I have received your email and will reply shortly.”
For a short workplace reply, “Received, thanks. I’ll review it today” is clear and polite. A single-word reply, “Received”, can work among colleagues, but it may sound abrupt and does not explain what happens next.
Common Spelling Mistakes
These are the errors to watch for when writing the word and its related forms.
| Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|
| Recieved | Received |
| Recievd | Received |
| Receiveing | Receiving |
| Recieving | Receiving |
| Reciever | Receiver |
| Reciept | Receipt |
| Decieve | Deceive |
| Concieve | Conceive |
| Percieve | Perceive |
The easiest way to avoid these errors is to learn the shared cei pattern in receive, deceive, conceive, and perceive. Then remember that the final e is retained before d in received but dropped before -ing in receiving.
Test Yourself: Received or Recieved?
Choose the correct spelling in each sentence.
1. I have ___ your message.
- A. recieved
- B. received
2. Please keep the ___ as proof of purchase.
- A. reciept
- B. receipt
3. Which spelling means “strange”?
- A. wierd
- B. weird
4. Choose the correct spelling.
- A. science
- B. sceince
5. The office is ___ applications today.
- A. receiving
- B. receiveing
6. Which spelling is correct?
- A. deceive
- B. decieve
Answers and explanations
- Received. The correct past participle of receive uses ei after c.
- Receipt. The spelling includes a silent p.
- Weird. This word is a familiar challenge to the simple “i before e” rhyme.
- Science. The correct spelling is science. Its vowel letters do not form the same simple combination as in receive.
- Receiving. Drop the final e before adding -ing.
- Deceive. It shares the -ceive spelling pattern with receive.
FAQs
Is it received or recieved?
Received is correct. Recieved is a misspelling in standard English.
What is the past tense of receive?
The past tense is received. For example: “I received your letter yesterday.”
What is the past participle of receive?
The past participle is also received. For example: “I have received your letter.”
Is it receiving or receiveing?
Receiving is correct. The final e in receive is dropped before adding -ing.
Is recieved correct in British English?
No. British and American English both use received.
Why is received spelled with ei?
The word’s spelling is part of its established form in English. The “i before e, except after c” rhyme helps explain the letter order, but it is not a complete rule for all English words.
Does received mean approved?
No. Received means something arrived or was obtained. Approved means it was accepted or authorized.
Why is the p silent in receipt?
The p was restored to the spelling under Latin influence after about 1500, but the pronunciation did not change to include the sound.
Conclusion
Received is the correct spelling, while recieved is incorrect in standard English. Remember the base word receive: its past tense is formed by adding d, keeping the final e.
The familiar “i before e, except after c” rhyme can help, but it has enough exceptions that you should not rely on it alone.
Learning related words such as receiving, receiver, and receipt will help you recognize the pattern and avoid mistakes in everyday messages and professional writing.
