incipient
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- incipience noun
- incipiently adverb
Etymology
Origin of incipient
1580–90; < Latin incipient- (stem of incipiēns, present participle of incipere to take in hand, begin), equivalent to in- in- 2 + -cipi- (combining form of capi- take) + -ent- -ent
Explanation
Incipient means something is in an early stage of existence. In its incipient form, basketball was played with a soccer ball and peach baskets for goals. Bouncy orange balls and nets came later. Incipient comes from the Latin incipere "to begin." The related, and more commonly used, word inception means the beginning or the start. It is important to note that when something is in an incipient stage, there is a chance it will never come to completion. So be on the lookout for incipient trouble or an incipient crisis — you might be able to prevent it from happening.
Vocabulary lists containing incipient
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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.
He also signals, with chapters on highway-building, housing and incipient suburbanization, new forces that would radically reshape both the cityscape and patterns of living.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025
As fine arts funding withers across sectors and Hollywood budgets shrink while studios retreat from local productions, workers are still recovering from lengthy strikes and the incipient threat of artificial intelligence.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2025
In 2018, as Adams begins to plan for his incipient mayoral campaign, a Turkish promoter reaches out to an Adams staffer with a straw-donor strategy.
From Slate • Sep. 26, 2024
It is among a handful of countries, inlcuding the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Thailand, that are regulating what is still an incipient edible insects industry.
From BBC • Sep. 6, 2024
Of course, Bobby’s fears were thought by some to be incipient paranoia, and although it was highly unlikely that the KGB was plotting against him, even paranoids can have real enemies.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
