incubate
verb (used with object)
to sit upon (eggs) for the purpose of hatching.
incubates
-
present tense formof incubate (3rd person singular).present tense
Used to describe things happening now or regularly.
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.
For more than 70 years, most annual flu vaccines have come from a manufacturing process that incubates the virus in chicken eggs.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
"Twitter has long served as the place where our national conversation incubates and develops," he says in the video.
From BBC ● May 9, 2023
Stockton also incubates eggs and cares for the turtles in the first year of their lives.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 8, 2022
Talking does not just reflect thinking, but shapes it, too, or — to use a favorite Beckerman word — incubates it.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 18, 2022
The emergence of hiv was subtle: it incubates for years in a human host before it kills the host.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
