incidence

noun in·ci·dence \ ˈin(t)-sə-dən(t)s , -ˌden(t)s \

|Updated on: 11 Aug 2018

Examples: incidence in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of incidence

1 a : angle of incidence

b : the arrival of something (such as a projectile or a ray of light) at a surface

2 a : an act or the fact or manner of falling upon or affecting : occurrence

b : rate of occurrence or influence

a high incidence of crime

See incidence defined for English-language learners

See incidence defined for kids

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Examples of incidence in a Sentence

an increased incidence of diabetes
a high incidence of criminal behavior

Recent Examples of incidence from the Web

But experts warn that the alternative — detaining families together — may also pose serious risks to kids’ mental health, potentially increasing the incidence of everything from PTSD to suicide.

— jamie ducharme, Time, "Separating Kids From Parents Can Cause Psychological Harm. But Experts Say Detaining Them Together Isn't Much Better," 21 June 2018
Of the nine dog breeds with the highest incidence of death on these three major airlines, four are brachycephalic breeds that are only allowed on United.

— martine powers, chicagotribune.com, "More dogs die on United than on any other airline. Here's why.," 6 Apr. 2018
Other autoimmune disorders, like lupus, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis, can trigger autoimmune changes that lead to a higher incidence of angular cheilitis.

— amber brenza, SELF, "Why Do the Corners of My Mouth Crack—and How Do I Fix It?," 31 Mar. 2018
Other life-threatening infections like anaplasmosis, babesiosis, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever are increasing in incidence even more quickly than Lyme.

— megan molteni, WIRED, "We Have No Idea How Bad the US Tick Problem Is," 4 July 2018
Schake said that veterans with post-traumatic stress do have a somewhat higher incidence of violence risk factors like mental illnesses and substance abuse than the general population.

— alex horton, Washington Post, "This veterans home was a peaceful place for healing. Then a former patient returned with a rifle.," 10 Mar. 2018
Research has shown that firefighters have a higher incidence of all types of cancer at an earlier age than the general population.

— martin vassolo, miamiherald, "South Florida firefighters and researchers unite to fight an invisible killer," 11 Feb. 2018
Travellers and gypsies have the highest incidence of disability of any ethnic group and the lowest level of education.

— The Economist, "No place to roamWho is a gypsy? Britain’s new definition is causing problems," 11 Jan. 2018
The incidence of these tumors has increased 10-fold over the past decade, but the disease doesn’t seem to be making much of a dent in the green sea turtle’s recovery from near extinction.

— elizabeth pennisi, Science | AAAS, "Cure for a common turtle cancer takes a lesson from human cancers," 7 June 2018

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

Did You Know?

The words incident, incidence, and instance may seem similar (and, in fact, incident and incidence are closely related), but they are not used identically. In current use, incidence usually means "rate of occurrence" and is often qualified in some way ("a high incidence of diabetes"). Incident usually refers to a particular event, often something unusual or unpleasant ("many such incidents go unreported"). Instance suggests a particular occurrence that is offered as an example ("another instance of bureaucratic bumbling"); it can also be synonymous with case ("many instances in which the wrong form was submitted"). The plural incidences sometimes occurs in such contexts as "several recent incidences of crime," but this use is often criticized as incorrect.

First Known Use of incidence

1626

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

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INCIDENCE Defined for English Language Learners

incidence

noun

Definition of incidence for English Language Learners

: the number of times something happens or develops : the rate at which something occurs
: the angle at which a ray (such as a ray of light) hits a surface

Medical Dictionary

incidence

noun in·ci·dence \ ˈin(t)-səd-ən(t)s, -sə-ˌden(t)s \

medical Definition of incidence

1 a : angle of incidence

b : the arrival of something (as a ray of light) at a surface

2 a : an act or the fact or manner of occurring or affecting

diseases of domestic incidence
—Science

b : rate of occurrence or influence; especially : the rate of occurrence of new cases of a particular disease in a population being studied — compare prevalence