DEFINITIONS

incumbent

[ in-kuhm-buh nt ]
/ ɪnˈkʌm bənt /

adjective

holding an indicated position, role, office, etc., currently: the incumbent officers of the club.
obligatory (often followed by on or upon): a duty incumbent upon me.
Archaic. resting, lying, leaning, or pressing on something: incumbent upon the cool grass.

noun

the holder of an office: The incumbent was challenged by a fusion candidate.
British. a person who holds an ecclesiastical benefice.

Content related to incumbent

Incumbent, Misogynistic and Other Trending Words On Dictionary.comThe midterm elections weren't just sending folks to the polls. Plenty of you landed on Dictionary.com looking for answers. So what did we learn? Let's review this week in words!
READ MORE
Word Trends: Syzygy, Psychosomatic, LibertineSome words, such as affect, metaphor, and irony, hold relatively steady in lookups at Dictionary.com regardless of what’s happening in pop culture, politics, or social media. Other words shift wildly in rank and volume, often as a ripple effect of a news item or event that has piqued people’s curiosity—we call those trending words. Here are few notable trending words from the week of March 26 to April …
READ MORE

Words nearby incumbent

inculpable, inculpate, incult, inculturation, incumbency, incumbent, incumbent on, incumber, incumbrance, incunable, incunabula

Origin of incumbent

1375–1425; late Middle English (noun) < Latin incumbent- (stem of incumbēns present participle of incumbere to lie or lean upon, equivalent to in- in-2 + cumb- (nasalized variant of cub- sit, lie; see incubus) + -ent- -ent

OTHER WORDS FROM incumbent

in·cum·bent·ly, adverban·ti-in·cum·bent, adjective, nounnon·in·cum·bent, noun, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for non-incumbent

  • The asset is a reputation for administrative competence unmatched by any non-incumbent presidential candidate since .

    Romney's Biggest Speech|David Frum|August 28, 2012|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for non-incumbent

incumbent
/ (ɪnˈkʌmbənt) /

adjective

formal (often postpositive and foll by on or upon and an infinitive) morally binding or necessary; obligatoryit is incumbent on me to attend
(usually postpositive and foll by on) resting or lying (on)

noun

a person who holds an office, esp a clergyman holding a benefice

Derived forms of incumbent

incumbently, adverb

Word Origin for incumbent

C16: from Latin incumbere to lie upon, devote one's attention to, from in- ² + -cumbere, related to Latin cubāre to lie down
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Culture definitions for non-incumbent

incumbent
[ (in-kum-buhnt) ]

One who holds a public office. By virtue of their experience in office, their exposure to the public, and their ability to raise campaign funds, incumbents usually have a significant advantage over opponents if they choose to run for reelection.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.