incipient
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
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.
That the incipient games are likely to be less a party than a very expensive headache.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
Letter Cresset External link April 16: Recent troubling private-credit headlines prompted market Cassandras to proclaim an incipient credit crisis.
From Barron's ● Apr. 17, 2026
"We kept seeing incipient problems which I thought were not being tackled properly, and indeed I thought the problems were getting worse," he told the House of Commons committee.
From BBC ● Nov. 24, 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
I look at our hands, her smooth one, the nails pale moons, mine with its uttered cuticles, its skin of incipient toad.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
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.
