encapsulate

verb

en·cap·su·late | \in-ˈkap-sə-ˌlāt,

en-\

encapsulated; encapsulating

Definition of encapsulate

transitive verb

1 : to enclose in or as if in a capsule a pilot encapsulated in the cockpit

2 : epitomize, summarize encapsulate an era in an aphorism

intransitive verb

: to become encapsulated

Other Words from encapsulate Synonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about encapsulate

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Did You Know?

Encapsulate and its related noun, "capsule," derive from "capsula," a diminutive form of the Latin noun capsa, meaning "box." "Capsa" also gave us our noun "case" (the container kind; the legal sense has a different origin). The original sense of encapsulate, meaning "to enclose something in a capsule," first appeared in the late 19th century. Its extended meaning, "to give a summary or synopsis of something," plays on the notion of a capsule as something compact, self-contained, and often easily digestible (as in a capsule of medicine). There is also a verb "capsule," which is more or less synonymous with "encapsulate."

Examples of encapsulate in a Sentence

The contaminated material should be encapsulated and removed. can you encapsulate the president's speech in about a paragraph?

Recent Examples on the Web

The effort to get more water under the bumpy two-lane black top, originally launched by Congress in 1989, has encapsulated all the numbing delays, doubts and disputes that have dogged the broader plans to restore the Everglades. — Curtis Morgan, miamiherald, "A bridge to help heal the Everglades," 19 Mar. 2013 In fact, even that designation doesn’t encapsulate the level of entitlement required to complain about which night you’ll be paid to drink beer and point, slack-jawed, at the firelit sky. — Nestor Ramos, BostonGlobe.com, "The Fourth of July falls on a Wednesday this year. And that presents some . . . challenges," 2 July 2018 The play encapsulated so many of the defining football characteristics Bernard brought to the Bengals that year (and years since): elusivity, creativity, electricity, relentlessness and a megadose of fun. — Paul Dehner Jr., Cincinnati.com, "No. 4 Cincinnati Bengals play of last 30 years: Gio Bernard spins Dolphins in circles," 27 June 2018 De Niro’s words encapsulated the progression of the Trump presidency grief cycle. — Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, "Robert De Niro’s Toothless Protest," 11 June 2018 Here's Steve Wulf's account of Steinbrenner's fourth hiring of Martin, which seems to encapsulate the owner's legendary impatience and fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants nature. — Tom Verducci, SI.com, "Nine Innings: How Bryce Harper Is Trying to Revive His Season, What We Learned in the First Half and More," 9 July 2018 Now, Harley seems to encapsulate a lot of what’s going wrong. — Bloomberg, latimes.com, "Harley-Davidson says it is moving some production out of U.S. to avoid EU tariffs," 25 June 2018 There's a power to the show that's hard to encapsulate in words, and this evocative final run cemented The Leftovers as one of the Peak TV greats. — Emma Dibdin, Harper's BAZAAR, "The 20 Best TV Shows Of 2017," 29 Dec. 2017 And then Salah danced past Sergio Ramos, a player whose grace and guile encapsulate his team. — Rory Smith, New York Times, "Real Madrid Beats Liverpool in Champions League Final on a Wonder and Two Blunders," 27 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'encapsulate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.