incumbent

American  

[in-kuhm-buhnt] / ɪnˈkʌm bənt /

adjective

1. holding an indicated position, role, office, etc., currently.

   the incumbent officers of the club.

2. obligatory (often followed by on orupon ).

   a duty incumbent upon me.

3. Archaic. resting, lying, leaning, or pressing on something.

   incumbent upon the cool grass.

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noun

• incumbents
  plural

1. the holder of an office.

   The incumbent was challenged by a fusion candidate.

2. British. a person who holds an ecclesiastical benefice.

incumbent British  

/ ɪnˈkʌmbənt /

adjective

1. formal morally binding or necessary; obligatory

   it is incumbent on me to attend

2. resting or lying (on)

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noun

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

incumbent Cultural  

1. 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.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonincumbent
  noun
• anti-incumbent
  adjective
• incumbently
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• incumbents
  plural

Etymology

Origin of incumbent

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English (noun), from Latin incumbent-, stem of incumbēns “lying upon,” present participle of incumbere “to lie or lean upon,” equivalent to in- in- ² + -cumbere (variant combining form of cubāre “to lie down”; see cubicle)

Explanation

An incumbent is an official who holds an office. If you want to run for congress, you're going to have to beat the incumbent. Incumbent comes from the Latin word incumbens, which means "lying in" or "leaning on," but came to mean "holding a position." It was first used in English for someone holding a church office, and then someone holding any office. You'll most likely hear it today for political officials. In a race for mayor, the incumbent mayor faces a challenger. Incumbent also means "required by obligation." It is incumbent upon you to do the dishes.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

incumbent incumbents

But they likely will make the Alaska race a higher priority after a strong showing Tuesday by former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola, who topped the field in the primary against incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

GOP incumbent Sen. Ashley Moody, appointed to Marco Rubio’s old seat, is up for election.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

"I think they all feel like it's such an important moment that it's incumbent upon them to do whatever they can to shape the direction that this technology is going," Smith said.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

During a 1980 debate against the incumbent Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan famously asked voters if they were better off now than they were four years ago.

From Salon ● Aug. 13, 2026

In the televised debates between party leaders ahead of the 2010 elections in the UK, incumbent Prime Minister Gordon Brown made the mistake of choosing the wrong tense, and was punished for it.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Kim Varet said her supporters have “obviously put a lot of thought into” which of the incumbents to support, but they have had a hard time swallowing the idea of voting for either.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026

But a ban would give more power to a handful of incumbents, raise startup costs, and weaken the open-model ecosystem necessary for American innovation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

"Denying American startups access to models available abroad would stifle competition, entrench incumbents, and function as a tax on intelligence," the letter from the Little Tech Association said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Many of these winning candidates have unseated entrenched incumbents, as 29-year-old Colorado attorney Melat Kiros did to U.S.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

When Faye came down from Sacramento and opened her house there was a flurry of animosity from the two incumbents.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

Related Words

• occupant