incremental

adjective

in·​cre·​men·​tal ˌiŋ-krə-ˈmen-tᵊl 

ˌin-

: of, relating to, being, or occurring in especially small increments

incremental additions

incremental change

incrementally

ˌiŋ-krə-ˈmen-tᵊl-ē 

ˌin-

adverb

Synonyms of incremental

• gradual

Examples of incremental in a Sentence

the incremental evolution of the collection from a specialized gallery into a comprehensive art museum

the incremental total for my collection of baseball cards

Recent Examples on the Web

Instead, this latest effort represents the incremental progress essential to experimental science, where errors and uncertainties are identified and quantified, and future generations of scientists can build upon it. —Big Think, 6 May 2026

The Browns are still mostly rebuilding the offensive roster and hoping for incremental improvement. —The Athletic Nfl Staff, New York Times, 4 May 2026

Given Amazon's massive scale, with revenue expected to reach more than $800 billion this year, Luria cautioned that for now the opportunity is likely incremental rather than transformational. —Paulina Likos, CNBC, 4 May 2026

And even after that, incremental pushes forward instead of a reset, including landing Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell in the 2025 trade of Butler, and the Norman Powell addition last summer. —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 4 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1696, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing incremental

• incremental repetition

Rhymes for incremental

• accidental
• compartmental
• continental
• detrimental
• elemental
• fundamental
• governmental
• incidental
• instrumental
• interdental
• monumental
• nonjudgmental