encompass
Americanverb (used with object)
-
encompasses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
encompassed,
past participle, past
-
encompassing
present participle
verb
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to enclose within a circle; surround
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to bring about; cause to happen; contrive
he encompassed the enemy's ruin
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to include entirely or comprehensively
this book encompasses the whole range of knowledge
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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encompasssimple
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encompassessimple
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have encompassedperfect
-
has encompassedperfect
-
am encompassingprogressive
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are encompassingprogressive
-
is encompassingprogressive
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have been encompassingperfect progressive
-
has been encompassingperfect progressive
Past
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encompassedsimple
-
had encompassedperfect
-
was encompassingprogressive
-
were encompassingprogressive
-
had been encompassingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of encompass
Explanation
Encompass means to contain. When you see the word, picture a campus which encompasses lecture halls, a football field, a medical center, a dining hall and some parking lots. Encompass can be used when talking about anything that contains something else. A lecture on Edward Hopper might encompass all aspects of his life and art, a work of art could encompass many techniques, and a policeman's jurisdiction may encompass an entire state. The continental U.S. encompasses 48 states. This entry encompasses many examples of the word encompass in use!
Vocabulary lists containing encompass
Born a Crime
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The Things They Carried
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The board agreed to extend the review by one year at a time back to 2015, which would encompass up to 4,500 further cases and take an estimated five years to complete.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Forecasts from the Fed would benefit from scenarios that encompass the possibility that interest rates are signaling something more structural and lasting than a series of temporary shocks.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
Evacuation warnings were issued in the area as the Palos fire grew to encompass 20 acres by about 4:15 p.m., according to Fire Department spokesperson Keith Navarre.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
His most celebrated works encompass an array of ambitious themes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
The US tests, known as Operation Hardtack, had been planned for nearly three years and were to encompass surface, underwater, and high-altitude trials.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Year: 2013 Compiled by: Slate Staff Of note: Per the subheading, this encompasses “almost-forgotten moments” from recent history “that would have ‘won the Internet’ if they happened today.”
From Slate ● Oct. 7, 2026
It now encompasses a mashup of disparate tire shops, oil change outfits and repair centers, including franchises and company-owned stores, that maintain their local identity but benefit from being part of a synchronized national network.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
The Topix is a broader index including domestic stocks, while the Nikkei encompasses only the top 225 companies.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
Supernaw, whose council district encompasses the $65-million project, had reservations about the price tag before ultimately supporting it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
New Guinea, though it accounts for only a small fraction of the world’s land area, encompasses a disproportionate fraction of its human diversity.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
"Throughout an extraordinary lifetime devoted entirely to artistic creation, Kusama pursued an internationally acclaimed career as a pioneering avant-garde artist whose creative practice encompassed visual art, performance, fiction, and poetry," it said.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
The full range of Jayhawks sounds are encompassed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
The deal encompassed a $1-billion investment by Disney in OpenAI.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2026
Sales for the latest quarter, which encompassed the key holiday-shopping period, were $30.45 billion, down 1.5%, with same-store sales down 2.5%.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 3, 2026
I write to you, encompassed by peril and ignorant whether I am ever doomed to see again dear England and the dearer friends that inhabit it.
From "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley
Continental said the field it plans to explore sits north of Venezuela’s Orinoco River in the state of Anzoátegui, encompassing 126,000 acres with an estimated 30 billion barrels of oil resources buried underground.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
The protected area is enormous, encompassing everything we could see through our binoculars from there.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026
The weather service has issued coastal flood and high surf advisories encompassing Santa Catalina and Santa Barbara islands, Malibu, Los Angeles and Ventura County.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
Isak played 22 games encompassing 1,033 minutes, scoring four goals at a rate of one every 258 minutes.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Isidore stood holding the two handles, experiencing himself as encompassing every other living thing, and then, reluctantly, he let go.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
