including

Meanings

1. 1preposition

   Having something as one part of a larger group or total.

   Grammar: Followed by a noun or pronoun: including me, including tax. It often comes after a comma or at the start of a phrase.

   Patterns

   • including someone/something
   • including yourself
   • including tax/shipping

   Everyone was invited, including the neighbors.

   The price is $50, including delivery.

   Many countries, including France and Germany, signed the agreement.

2. 2preposition

   Used to add a specific example or detail to what has just been said.

   Grammar: Often used after a comma to add extra information: The team, including the coach, celebrated.

   Patterns

   • including the fact that
   • including but not limited to

   The report was criticized, including by members of his own party.

   We have many costs, including rent, utilities, and food.

Common combinations

including tax

The total comes to $120, including tax.

including shipping

The price is $30, including shipping and handling.

including me

Everyone was surprised, including me.

including but not limited to

The rule applies to all employees, including but not limited to managers.

not including

The tour lasts three hours, not including lunch.

Synonyms and how they differ

such as

Introduces examples, but 'such as' does not necessarily mean the examples are part of a complete group; it just gives examples.

among others

Similar in meaning but comes after the list, not before: France, Germany, among others.

containing

More about physical contents; 'including' is about membership in a group.

Opposites

Word family

include verb

To have something as a part.

included adjective

Being part of a group or total.

inclusion noun

The act of including someone or something.

inclusive adjective

Including everything or everyone.

Commonly confused: including or exclusive?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “including”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words