incumbent 1 of 2

noun

Definition of incumbentnext
as in officeholder

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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
Yet the challenger believed that the AI issue was cutting through, reaching voters who weren’t focused on foreign policy, as an AI industry PAC swooped in to help the incumbent. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 14 July 2026 And usually, being an incumbent is pretty safe territory for members of Congress. — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 14 July 2026
Adjective
Bringing work back to Hollywood has become a major platform for both incumbent Mayor Karen Bass and opponent Nithya Raman, with both calling for California’s $750 million film and TV tax incentives program to be uncapped. — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 9 July 2026 In addition, an incumbent Connecticut governor has not been voted out of office in the general election since 1954 when Republican John Davis Lodge lost to a young Democrat named Abe Ribicoff. — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 9 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for incumbent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incumbent
  1. officeholder
  2. compulsory
  3. required
  4. mandatory
  5. necessary
Noun
  • Becerra, a longtime Democratic officeholder, received support from 61% of likely voters, compared with 36% for Hilton, a populist conservative who once advised a British prime minister.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 16 July 2026
  • The same energy that helped elect Zohran Mamdani has fueled a string of insurgent victories, knocking off longtime officeholders and helping progress challengers break through in New York and Colorado.
    — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 14 July 2026
Definition of officeholder
Adjective
  • Both laws represent significant concessions by Netanyahu’s Likud party to ultra-Orthodox politicians seeking to formalize their community’s de facto exemption from serving in the military, which is compulsory for most Jewish men and women in Israel.
    — Melanie Lidman, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026
  • As economist and Opportunity@Work founder Byron Auguste has noted, when policymakers, employers and parents all realized that the shifting job landscape required a different preparatory path, states passed compulsory education laws.
    — Tim Knowles, Fortune, 8 July 2026
Definition of compulsory
Adjective
  • According to a July 3 letter obtained by The Sacramento Bee, the city still needed to complete required rezoning, adopt the housing element and submit both to HCD before the department could certify the plan.
    — Naomi Taxay, Sacbee.com, 17 July 2026
  • Plaintiffs alleged that the event promoters were negligent in failing to secure required permits, not providing adequate security or crowd control and misrepresenting the event as safe for families, according to the statement.
    — Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 July 2026
Definition of required
Adjective
  • Zambada’s punishment was guaranteed by his guilty plea last year to drug trafficking charges that carry a mandatory life sentence.
    — Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2026
  • The original bZ4X often felt like Toyota showing up because attendance was mandatory.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 20 July 2026
Definition of mandatory
Adjective
  • Under the circumstances seen in the video, Harrison said, firing a gun was not necessary.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 18 July 2026
  • Is another big sale, most importantly Bruno Guimaraes, necessary this summer?
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 18 July 2026
Definition of necessary

Browse Nearby Words

incumbency
incumbent
incumbents
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Incumbent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incumbent. Accessed 23 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on incumbent

Nglish: Translation of incumbent for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of maverick

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
thumbnail graphic with text word of the day quiz
Weekly "Word of the Day" Quiz See how well you know each Word of the Day for Ju...
See All