incidence
Americannoun
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incidences
plural
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the rate or range of occurrence or influence of something, especially of something unwanted.
the high incidence of heart disease in men over 40.
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a falling upon, affecting, or befalling; occurrence.
The incidence of murder that Sunday afternoon shocked the sleepy village.
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Optics, Physics.
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the striking of a ray of light, beam of electrons, etc., on a surface, or the direction of striking.
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the fact or the manner of being incident.
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Geometry. partial coincidence of two figures, as of a line and a plane containing it.
noun
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degree, extent, or frequency of occurrence; amount
a high incidence of death from pneumonia
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the act or manner of impinging on or affecting by proximity or influence
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physics the arrival of a beam of light or particles at a surface See also angle of incidence
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geometry the partial coincidence of two configurations, such as a point that lies on a circle
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of incidence
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin incidentia. See incident, -ence
Explanation
Incidence means the frequency with which something bad occurs. You’ll hear of “incidences of cancer” or “incidences of war." You hope the incidence is decreasing, not increasing. You might confuse incidence and incident. They sound similar, but incident refers only to something that happened, not to the frequency with which it happens. After a car accident, the police file an incident report, which is a fancy way of saying they write down what happened. Looking at these reports grouped together can show you if the incidence of accidents at specific intersections in town is on the rise.
Vocabulary lists containing incidence
"'Blaxicans' and Other Reinvented Americans," Vocabulary from the argument
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“For the Herd’s Sake, Vaccinate" by Steven L. Weinreb
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Word Generation Weekly - Series 1
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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:
Or the increased incidence of the disease’s advanced stage, progressive massive fibrosis, or PMF.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
“We’re seeing that there’s a continued rise in the incidence of cancer across multiple different patient segments,” GSK’s Abdullah said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
To investigate, researchers examined cancer incidence records collected by England's National Disease Registry Service between 2001 and 2019.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
The study was observational, meaning it could identify associations and trends but could not determine whether particular risk factors directly caused the increases in cancer incidence.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
During the first half of the twentieth century, the incidence of violent crime in the United States was, for the most part, fairly steady.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
Morgan’s Celine Pannuti had said that a strong flu season could uplift sales for Haleon, with rising incidences in Europe and the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
According to available data, around twenty incidences were reported in the maritime area along the French Riviera between the 16th century and the early 2000s with waves often exceeding two meters.
From Science Daily ● May 21, 2026
But even her backers admit as one put it to me that she is a “work in progress,” more vulnerable to foot in mouth moments as well as incidences of triumph.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2024
The bill, which is being considered by the governor, would require the state to publish online data citing any incidences of abuse and uses of isolation in teenage treatment facilities against teenagers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2024
While these new incidences of yellow fever were few and scattered, they demonstrated clearly that the disease had not been completely wiped out.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
