What does "inception" mean?

1. (the beginning) the start of something, like a business, a plan, or a project. 2. (recursion or nesting) the idea of something being inside itself, like a dream within a dream.

How do you use "inception"?

Often follows the possessive 'its' or 'their', or appears in the phrase 'since its inception'.

inception

US //ˌɪnˈsɛpʃən// UK //ɪnsˈɛpʃən// in·cep·tion

1 the beginning (n.)
C1 Advanced Formal

the start of something, like a business, a plan, or a project.

the creation or beginning of something; the formal establishment of an entity or process.

Example

The project has been successful since its inception three years ago.

Example

Since its inception in the late 1990s, the charity has expanded its operations to over forty countries across three continents.

Usage

Often follows the possessive 'its' or 'their', or appears in the phrase 'since its inception'.
2 recursion or nesting (n.)
C2 Proficiency Informal Slang

the idea of something being inside itself, like a dream within a dream.

a layering, nesting, or recursion of something within itself; a modern usage popularized by cinema.

Example

The way this app opens another version of itself is pure inception.

Example

The architectural design featured a courtyard within a courtyard, creating a sense of inception that disoriented first-time visitors.

Teacher's tip

This sense is a modern cultural reference to the 2010 film 'Inception'; it is common in internet culture but should be avoided in formal academic writing.
- recursion
- nesting

Origin

Late Middle English, borrowed from Latin inceptiō, from inceptus, perfect passive participle of incipiō (“I begin”). The layering sense derives from the 2010 science fiction film Inception, in which a team of people infiltrate someone’s subconscious mind, proceeding through several layers of dreams with the goal of causing someone to incept an idea.