First published 1900; not yet revised

incentiveadjective & noun

Etymology
Meaning & use
Pronunciation
Frequency
Compounds & derived words

Quotations

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Factsheet

What does the word incentive mean?

There are five meanings listed in OED's entry for the word incentive, one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

See meaning & use

How common is the word incentive?

About 20occurrences per million words in modern written English

1750	2.0
1760	1.8
1770	2.9
1780	2.6
1790	2.8
1800	3.2
1810	2.6
1820	2.6
1830	2.9
1840	2.5
1850	2.8
1860	2.4
1870	2.7
1880	3.2
1890	3.7
1900	4.1
1910	6.1
1920	7.4
1930	8.5
1940	12
1950	14
1960	16
1970	20
1980	25
1990	26
2000	24
2010	24

See frequency

How is the word incentive pronounced?

British English

/ɪnˈsɛntɪv/

in-SEN-tiv

U.S. English

/ᵻnˈsɛn(t)ɪv/

uhn-SEN-tiv

See pronunciation

Where does the word incentive come from?

Earliest known use

Middle English

The earliest known use of the word incentive is in the Middle English period (1150—1500).

OED's earliest evidence for incentive is from before 1475, in R. Higden's Polychronicon.

incentive is a borrowing from Latin.

Etymons: Latin incentīvus.

See etymology

Nearby entries

incensing, n.²a1513–
incensing, adj.1598–
incension, n.?a1475–1745
incensive, adj. & n.1570–1677
incensor | incenser, n.a1575–1627
incensory, n.1598–
incensurable, adj.1846–
incensurably, adv.1846–
incent, v.1844–
incention, n.1656
incentive, adj. & n.?a1475–
incentively, adv.1856–
incentivization, n.1977–
incentivize, v.1968–
incentivized, adj.1973–
incentor, n.1570–
incentre | incenter, n.1882–
incentre | encentre, v.1611–
incept, v.1569–
inception, n.a1483–
Inceptisol, n.1960–

Browse more nearby entries

Etymology

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Pronunciation

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Compounds & derived words

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Entry history for incentive, adj. & n.

incentive, adj. & n. was first published in 1900; not yet revised.

incentive, adj. & n. was last modified in July 2023.

Revision of the OED is a long-term project. Entries in oed.com which have not been revised may include:

corrections and revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
new senses, phrases, and quotations which have been added in subsequent print and online updates.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into incentive, adj. & n. in July 2023.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1900)

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OED Second Edition (1989)

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View incentive, a. and n. in OED Second Edition

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Chicago

Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “,” , .

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“” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, , .

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Citation details

Factsheet for incentive, adj. & n.

Browse entry

Nearby entries

incensing, n.²a1513–
incensing, adj.1598–
incension, n.?a1475–1745
incensive, adj. & n.1570–1677
incensor | incenser, n.a1575–1627
incensory, n.1598–
incensurable, adj.1846–
incensurably, adv.1846–
incent, v.1844–
incention, n.1656
incentive, adj. & n.?a1475–
incentively, adv.1856–
incentivization, n.1977–
incentivize, v.1968–
incentivized, adj.1973–
incentor, n.1570–
incentre | incenter, n.1882–
incentre | encentre, v.1611–
incept, v.1569–
inception, n.a1483–
Inceptisol, n.1960–

Browse more nearby entries