incumbent 1 of 2

noun

Definition of incumbentnext
as in officeholder

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incumbent

2 of 2

adjective

in-ˈkəm-bənt How to pronounce incumbent (audio)
as in compulsory
forcing one's compliance or participation by or as if by law it is incumbent upon you to attend every staff meeting

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of incumbent
Noun
Football clubs have to determine when to replace players — even when the incumbent is popular, committed and useful. — James McNicholas, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026 Two years earlier, Raman was elected to Los Angeles City Council, defeating an incumbent. — Paris Barraza, USA Today, 19 Aug. 2026
Adjective
In Los Angeles, however, the mayor’s race between incumbent Democrat Karen Bass and democratic socialist Nithya Raman is set to draw national attention. — Justine McDaniel, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026 Florida’s 20th District (Democratic primary) DeSantis’ gerrymander pushed multiple incumbent Democrats into hard-to-win seats. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 18 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for incumbent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incumbent
  1. officeholder
  2. compulsory
  3. required
  4. mandatory
  5. necessary
Noun
  • For the actual Democrat Day festivities featuring party leaders, candidates and officeholders, Welch was a notable no-show.
    — Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Roverud added that a misdemeanor conviction unrelated to an officeholder’s City Council duties did not require the council member to resign from office or forfeit their seat.
    — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of officeholder
Adjective
  • Voting is optional in New Zealand but enrollment for those eligible and living in the country is compulsory, with failure to do so punishable by a fine of 100 New Zealand dollars ($59).
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • While vessel inspections are not compulsory, member states can request a secondary inspection of a vessel in line with specified criteria.
    — Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of compulsory
Adjective
  • Auriga can, for example, alter launch velocity depending on the mass of the projectile, the required range and the type of target being engaged.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Investigators determined that multiple RVs may have been sold at Carson Pass RV in Lockeford without proper notification to their rightful owners and without completing the required Department of Motor Vehicles documentation.
    — Richard Ramos, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of required
Adjective
  • Indeed, the broad backlash against Flock has grown so strong that the surveillance company last week announced mandatory new audit controls and lower default data retention periods for US users.
    — Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Make an accuracy-and-baseline plan a mandatory pre-deployment gate, with the same formal sign-off as a security review, and separate offline testing from production monitoring, since models degrade quietly through data drift long after launch.
    — Sriram Bhargav Madhav, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of mandatory
Adjective
  • Those ideas say some people are superior to others, and the inequality that exists in the world around us reflects those innate differences, and inequality is a good thing, and a necessary thing, and the only real way to organize social life.
    — John Blake, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
  • No religious leanings necessary, this event is centered around inspirational music from professional singers.
    — Condé Nast Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of necessary

Browse Nearby Words

incumbency
incumbent
incumbents
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Cite this Entry

“Incumbent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incumbent. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on incumbent

Nglish: Translation of incumbent for Spanish Speakers

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