encompass
Americanverb (used with object)
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encompasses,
present (3rd person singular)
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encompassed,
past participle, past
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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
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has encompassedperfect
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am encompassingprogressive
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are encompassingprogressive
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is encompassingprogressive
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have been encompassingperfect progressive
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has been encompassingperfect progressive
Past
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encompassedsimple
-
had encompassedperfect
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was encompassingprogressive
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were encompassingprogressive
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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:
A template was then set up for other Instagrammers to take advantage, going on to encompass buzzy topics like East Asian rappers, the use of A.I. in the insurance industry, and the Himalayas.
From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026
A wildfire in Big Sur has burned 2,000 acres, spurred evacuations that encompass the Nepenthe restaurant and the Alila Ventana resort, and closed state parks in the area.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
The daily analysis has evolved over the years to encompass “common suppliers, common customers,” and even ”which stocks are grouped together in passive vehicles,” McNerney said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
Rather than explain how a leaner fish or one packed in oil might change the cake, the recipe simply expands to encompass nearly anything.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
A sudden, hard wind swirled up around them, and the monster spread its arms out wide, so wide they seemed to reach to opposite horizons, so wide they seemed big enough to encompass the world.
From "A Monster Calls" by Patrick Ness
Accessible via a small door to the right of the building’s famous front steps, the new attraction encompasses only a third of the existing undercroft, suspended within the larger surrounding space.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Archosaurs, in turn, are the lineage that encompasses two of the best-known groups of terrestrial vertebrates: crocodiles and dinosaurs, including birds.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
CFO Amrita Ahuja told MarketWatch that the raised outlook encompasses more than just the beat from the latest quarter.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
Wenger has been in a role which encompasses data analysis of the game, Fifa's online training and youth competitions since 2019.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
It completely encompasses the distant tree, making it glow a hot blue-white and causing the surrounding air to crackle with electricity.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
"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
That district had been Tennessee's 9th, which encompassed Memphis and was reliably won by Democrats.
From Barron's ● Aug. 8, 2026
The area encompassed by the geofence can be larger than several football fields.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 26, 2026
“On the case side of things, I wanted something that encompassed the totality of the show,” he says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026
When they got close, they saw that the fire encompassed an entire block.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
It estimates that its surplus on the “current account”—a trade measure encompassing goods, services and investment income—is headed to 1% of global GDP, a share no country has achieved in postwar history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Sets of instruments were stationed along every wall of the room, fully encompassing us in sound.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
The smart consumer electronics segment encompassing smartphones contributed about one-third of the top line.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Denning describes culture as encompassing values, norms, judgments, history, communities, moods, and even relationships involving power and care.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Chapters 16 and 17 integrate developments in Australia and New Guinea into the perspective of the whole region encompassing the East Asian mainland and Pacific islands.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
