Incipient Meaning
/ɪnˈsɪp.i.ənt/Definition, CEFR level C2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjIn an initial stage; beginning, starting, coming into existence.
nounA beginner.
Sentence Examples
My old leg injury ached with the pressure change from the incipient storm.
We believe we're seeing signs of incipient fascism.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
None
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ stage of the disease showed only mild symptoms but required immediate treatment.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The doctor noted the ____ stages of a cold and advised the patient to get plenty of rest.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from Latin incipiēns, present participle of incipiō (“begin”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"How many more places might have been distributed by her incipient majesty it is impossible to say, for the thread of her meditation was broken by the sudden termination of the path."
— 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XIII, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 141:
"It need not be supposed that all varieties or incipient species necessarily attain the rank of species."
— 1859, Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species:
"It may even be that because of incipient satiation, the shares of the marginal dollar display consumption propensities that are the reverse of the ones exhibited by the average dollar."
— 1995, Andreu Mas-Colell, Michael D. Whinston, and Jerry R. Green, Microeconomic Theory, Oxford University Press, page 115:
"Aislyn presses back against her house’s front door, panting a little with an incipient panic attack."
— 2020, N. K. Jemisin, The City We Became, Orbit, page 405:
Explore More C2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ stage of the disease showed only mild symptoms but required immediate treatment.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The doctor noted the ____ stages of a cold and advised the patient to get plenty of rest.