embedded

[ em-bed-id ]

adjective

1. fixed or snugly enclosed in a surrounding mass:

   The young turtles are weighed, measured, and tagged with an embedded microchip before being released back into the salt marsh.

2. incorporated into something as an essential characteristic:

   In any cultural context, deeply embedded values and attitudes can be difficult to change.

3. 1. being or relating to a journalist assigned to travel with a military unit or political campaign:

      He was an embedded reporter with the First Marine Division during the invasion of Iraq.

   2. working closely with a group or participating in a special event as an invited expert, creative professional, etc.:

      As Radio 3’s first embedded composer, he is writing one new piece of music a week for the breakfast show.

4. Digital Technology. (of text, images, sound, or code) placed in a computer file, HTML document, software program, or electronic device:

   Click here or watch the embedded video below to learn more about the work of our Foundation.

5. Grammar. (of a construction, as a phrase or clause) inserted into a larger construction, as a clause or sentence:

   Informative texts often include unfamiliar technical vocabulary and complex sentences with embedded clauses.

6. Histology. (of biological tissue) infiltrated with melted paraffin or other such material that later solidifies, enabling the preparation to be sliced very thin for viewing under a microscope (sometimes used in combination):

   The fixed and paraffin-embedded tissues were cut into sections 5 μm thick and mounted on glass slides.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of embed ( def ).

Word History and Origins

Origin of embedded¹

embed ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

UCLA, like other University of California campuses, provides direct college counselors — sometimes embedded at the high schools — to supplement the school’s own staff.

From Los Angeles Times

The Earth-size ovals, which are visible only at ultraviolet wavelengths, are embedded in layers of stratospheric haze that cap the planet's poles.

From Science Daily

The test uses harmless bacteriophages embedded in the gel to locate target bacteria in a sample of fluid such as lake water, urine or a container of milk, even in low concentrations.

From Science Daily

That’s why a promise not to cut benefits has become embedded into American politics for most of the program’s nine decades of existence.

From Los Angeles Times

While other forms of music are routinely acknowledged for their healing power, the vulnerability embedded in the lyrics of hip-hop is often overlooked.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fixed
• ingrained
• installed
• planted