J. M. Perry 
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When should you use inchoate?
Inchoate is most often used to describe something that is not, or not yet, completely formed or developed. It's a formal word that's sure to add pizzazz to any conversation—but only if you start working on pronouncing it correctly. The first two letters of inchoate do what you’d expect—exactly what the word in does. However, the choate in inchoate does not share the first sound of chair, nor does it rhyme with oat. Instead, it shares the first sound of cat, and rhymes with poet. Inchoate came to English in the 16th century from the Latin adjective incohātus, meaning "only begun, unfinished, imperfect," which in turn comes from a form of the verb incohāre, meaning "to start work on."
Examples of inchoate in a Sentence
Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker, 31 Jan. 2023
Williams and his admirers were certainly right to point out the inchoate and woolly nature of much of the 'survival of the species' talk which was in the air in the mid-20th century.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 14 June 2011
Distant strings heard faintly through an open door, a quiet trumpet in the balcony, and a huddle of wind instruments on the vast stage turned the hall into a great resonating chamber, alive with inchoate whispers.
—Vulture, 18 Mar. 2022
An inchoate plot then took shape in the form of the film’s second lead character.
—Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Dec. 2022
See all Example Sentences for inchoate 
Dictionary Entries Near inchoate
Cite this Entry
“Inchoate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inchoate. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
inchoate
adjective
Peterson v. Fire & Police Pension Ass'n, 759 P.2d 720 (1988)
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