Meaning & use
incapsulating
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“incapsulating” is a form of “incapsulate”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitiveraretechnical
Present participle of 'incapsulate': enclosing something completely, especially in a capsule or a protective layer; also expressing the main idea of something in a short form.
Grammar: Takes an object: 'The membrane is incapsulating the cell.' In modern English, the usual spelling is 'encapsulating'.
Patterns
- incapsulating something
- incapsulating something in something
The old diagram shows a protein incapsulating a small particle.
In this early paper, the author describes the shell as incapsulating the seed.
The term 'incapsulating' appears in nineteenth-century biology texts.
verbtransitiverareformal
Present participle of 'incapsulate': summarizing or expressing the central meaning of an idea, argument, or situation in a brief form.
Grammar: Takes an object: 'The report is incapsulating the main findings.' The standard modern spelling is 'encapsulating'.
Patterns
- incapsulating something
- incapsulating something in something
The final paragraph is incapsulating the whole argument in one sentence.
Her speech was incapsulating the spirit of the movement.
The phrase 'incapsulating the mood' is less common today than 'encapsulating the mood'.
Word forms
| third person singular | incapsulates |
|---|---|
| past tense | incapsulated |
| past participle | incapsulated |
| -ing form | incapsulating |
Common combinations
- incapsulating a cell
- The diagram shows a membrane incapsulating a cell.
- incapsulating an idea
- The title is incapsulating an idea that runs through the whole book.
- incapsulating a particle
- The old text describes a shell incapsulating a particle.
- incapsulating the main point
- The summary is incapsulating the main point of the lecture.
Synonyms and how they differ
- encapsulating
- The standard modern spelling; 'incapsulating' is a rare variant found mainly in older texts.
- enclosing
- Focuses on putting something inside a boundary, while 'incapsulating' often suggests a protective layer or a summary.
- summarizing
- Used for expressing main points briefly; 'incapsulating' can also mean physical enclosure.
Word family
- incapsulate verb
- Base form; rare variant of 'encapsulate'.
- incapsulation noun
- Rare variant of 'encapsulation'; the act of enclosing or summarizing.
- encapsulate verb
- Standard modern spelling of the same word.
Commonly confused: incapsulating or encapsulating?
incapsulating vs encapsulating
This is the usual modern spelling. 'Incapsulating' is a rare, older variant; use 'encapsulating' in normal writing.
Practice
Which sentence uses the standard modern spelling?
Choose one answer.
'Encapsulating' is the standard modern spelling. 'Incapsulating' is a rare variant found mainly in older texts, and the other two options are misspellings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “incapsulating”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.