incubation period
noun
: the period between the infection of an individual by a pathogen and the manifestation of the illness or disease it causes
Examples of incubation period in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In general, Crotty says, there’s a limit to how low incubation periods can go.
—
Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 9 Jan. 2024
Flu in particular has been known to have a very short incubation period with symptoms showing soon after exposure—anywhere from two to four days from when a person was infected.
—Kaitlin Sullivan, Health, 18 Feb. 2023
The incubation period for measles from exposure to fever is typically about 10 days, while rash onset will begin to be visible around 14 days after initial exposure, the agency said.
—Jonathan Limehouse, The Courier-Journal, 26 Mar. 2024
The onset of symptoms can sometimes take as long as 20 years because the infectious bacteria have a lengthy incubation period and proliferate slowly in the human body.
—Robert A. Schwartz, Discover Magazine, 18 Mar. 2024
Some bacteria can have an incubation period of one to two days.
—Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, CNN, 5 Feb. 2024
Measles also has a long incubation period, which means that someone could have measles and not know it for as long as two or three weeks.
—Katia Hetter, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024
Kitchen workers who refused and had not previously been vaccinated were reassigned until the end of the incubation period.
—Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
The incubation period for measles is very long, Murray adds.
—Amanda Musa, CNN, 23 Jan. 2024
Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 9 Jan. 2024
Flu in particular has been known to have a very short incubation period with symptoms showing soon after exposure—anywhere from two to four days from when a person was infected.
—Kaitlin Sullivan, Health, 18 Feb. 2023
The incubation period for measles from exposure to fever is typically about 10 days, while rash onset will begin to be visible around 14 days after initial exposure, the agency said.
—Jonathan Limehouse, The Courier-Journal, 26 Mar. 2024
The onset of symptoms can sometimes take as long as 20 years because the infectious bacteria have a lengthy incubation period and proliferate slowly in the human body.
—Robert A. Schwartz, Discover Magazine, 18 Mar. 2024
Some bacteria can have an incubation period of one to two days.
—Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, CNN, 5 Feb. 2024
Measles also has a long incubation period, which means that someone could have measles and not know it for as long as two or three weeks.
—Katia Hetter, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024
Kitchen workers who refused and had not previously been vaccinated were reassigned until the end of the incubation period.
—Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
The incubation period for measles is very long, Murray adds.
—Amanda Musa, CNN, 23 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'incubation period.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Incubation period.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incubation%20period. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
incubation period
noun
: the period between the infection of an individual by a pathogen and the manifestation of the disease it causes
Mono, which has an incubation period of 30 to 50 days, characteristically announces itself with headaches, fever, sore throat, tonsillitis, and extreme fatigue.—Your Health & Fitness
Your Health & FitnessQuarantines worked to control the SARS epidemic because SARS is much less contagious than flu and has a longer incubation period.—Christine Gorman, Time
Christine Gorman, TimeLove words? Need even more definitions?
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