incorporation
Americannoun
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the act of incorporating or the state of being incorporated.
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the act of forming a legal corporation.
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Grammar. the inclusion of the object or object reference within the inflected verb form, a type of word-formation frequent in American Indian languages.
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Psychoanalysis. the adoption of the views or characteristics of others, occurring in children as part of learning and maturation and in adults as a defense mechanism.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of incorporation
1350–1400; Middle English incorporacioun < Late Latin incorporātiōn- (stem of incorporātiō ), equivalent to incorporāt ( us ) ( see incorporate 1) + -iōn -ion
Explanation
Incorporation is making something part of a whole. The incorporation of egg yolks into a hot liquid must be done slowly so the eggs don't curdle. Incorporation can also refer to making a company a legal corporation, and the "Inc." after many company names stands for "Incorporated." If you're starting a new business, you should look into the laws regarding incorporation in your state, to see if incorporating would make sense for you. When territory is acquired and taken into a larger body, that's also incorporation. The incorporation of your small neighborhood park into the county parks system will help preserve it as a green space.
Vocabulary lists containing incorporation
"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 5
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Protecting Civil Liberties, Sections 1–4
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We'll Fly Away
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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.
Since city capybaras are there to stay, Ibama recommends fences, river cleanup, and “the incorporation of wildlife into urban planning.”
From Slate • May 27, 2026
The South East's oldest brewery, based on the year of incorporation, is Oxfordshire's Hook Norton.
From BBC • May 25, 2026
Musk and his longtime fixer, Jared Birchall—who typically avoids the spotlight—were both questioned about incorporation papers that were filed in 2017 to create a for-profit benefit corporation for OpenAI.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 4, 2026
“We were fighting not only for sewer, potholes and police protection but for self-determination and empowerment of our community,” Martinez de Vara wrote in a firsthand account of the incorporation campaign.
From Salon • May 3, 2026
For the Xhosa people, circumcision represents the formal incorporation of males into society.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
