incremental
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
happening in small stages or amounts over a period of time.
occurring in a series of small, gradual steps or additions, often leading to a cumulative effect.
Simple“The company made incremental changes to the software instead of releasing a completely new version.”
In context“The research team observed incremental improvements in the patients' mobility over the six-month trial, suggesting the treatment was effective but slow-acting.”
UsageUsually placed before the noun it modifies.
Teacher's tipThis word is very common in business and science to describe progress that is steady but not dramatic.
Synonyms
“Progress is often slow and incremental, until it happens all at once.”
“Violet and Stella age much more subtly here, gradually growing breasts and getting a little bit taller, but those tiny incremental changes mean so much to them.”
From increment + -al.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.