incubation

noun

in·​cu·​ba·​tion ˌiŋ-kyə-ˈbā-shən How to pronounce incubation (audio)
ˌin-
1
: the act or process of incubating
2

Examples of incubation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The sun was bright, like the incubation lamps farmers used to keep young chicks alive. Hazlitt, 14 Feb. 2024 The new measures include: a First Feature Film Initiative, now in its eighth edition; a co-investment program, Film Financing Scheme for Mainland Market; the Content Development Scheme for Streaming Platforms; and a script incubation program. Patrick Frater, Variety, 17 Feb. 2024 Perhaps what’s most important is for industry and policy leaders to work together to build the best possible environments for future incubation of this technology, and the markets themselves will then likely follow what’s most attractive. Sandy Carter, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024 The octopuses’ proximity to the vents suggests these creatures may have evolved to use warmth from the seeping hydrothermal fluid to accelerate the incubation process—which is notoriously long for many deep-sea creatures, leaving their offspring vulnerable to predators for extended periods. Ashley Balzer Vigil, Scientific American, 16 Jan. 2024 This is about creating a regional hub for content creation and the full ecosystem — production facilities, support facilities, industry tenancy, industry learning, incubation and startup, gaming, digital publishing, music. Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Dec. 2023 The researchers acknowledge that at least some of these regions are likely to have evolved after live births were already the norm and simply improve the efficiency of the internal incubation. John Timmer, Ars Technica, 6 Jan. 2024 The investigation and incubation phase for Alienware's QD-OLED monitors reportedly took two years. Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 3 Nov. 2023 In the normal incubation and hatching process, much or all of the yolk of the egg eventually gets fully absorbed by the chick but that didn’t happen in this instance. Lori Weisberg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'incubation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of incubation was in 1646

Dictionary Entries Near incubation

Cite this Entry

“Incubation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incubation. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

incubation

noun
in·​cu·​ba·​tion ˌiŋ-kyə-ˈbā-shən How to pronounce incubation (audio)
ˌin-
1
: the act or process of incubating
2

Medical Definition

incubation

noun
in·​cu·​ba·​tion ˌiŋ-kyə-ˈbā-shən, ˌin- How to pronounce incubation (audio)
1
: the act or process of incubating
2
incubational adjective
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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