incidence
in·ci·dence/ˈɪn.sɪ.dəns/noun
incidence is spelled I-N-C-I-D-E-N-C-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables (in·ci·dence). It appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, incidence means “The act of something happening; occurrence” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of incidence is incidences.
How many letters and syllables are in incidence?
| Letters | 9: I-N-C-I-D-E-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: in·ci·dence |
| In writing | 4.4 times per million words; the 12,216th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is incidence?
Incidence appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce incidence?
- /ˈɪn.sɪ.dəns/
Incidence has 3 syllables, split in·ci·dence in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-incidence.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Simplificationalizer-incidence.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of incidence
- incidences plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does incidence mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The act of something happening; occurrence.
- 2
The extent or the relative frequency of something happening.
- 3
The manner of falling; bearing or onus, as of a tax that falls unequally.
- 4
The striking of radiation or a projectile upon a surface.
- 5
A measure of the rate of new occurrence of a given medical condition in a population within a specified period of time.
- 6
The falling of a point on a line, or a line on a plane.
- 7
The relation between an edge of a graph and one of the vertices it connects.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Incidence in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Auftreten, Vorkommen , Auftretenshäufigkeit , Inzidenz |
| Spanish | incidencia |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does incidence come from?
From Middle French incidence, from Medieval Latin incidentia (“a falling upon”), from Latin incidens, present participle of incidere (“to fall upon”), from in (“on”) + cadere (“to fall”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).