an incremental amount

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "an incremental amount" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when referring to a small, gradual increase or addition to something, often in contexts like finance, project management, or data analysis. Example: "The project budget will be adjusted by an incremental amount each quarter to account for inflation."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

"Over the past 20 years, we've had probably 15 new drugs approved by the F.D.A., and each of them adds an incremental amount to the length of life, " said Dr. Gabriel N. Hortobagyi, director of the breast cancer research program at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

The New York Times - Health

If the gas absorbs an incremental amount of heat dQ from a heat reservoir at temperature T and expands reversibly against the maximum possible restraining pressure P, then it does the maximum work dW = P dV, where dV is the change in volume.

Encyclopedia Britannica

They suggested that an incremental amount of 10 15 % oil can be recovered by offsetting the producer from injector.

Journal of Petroleum Exploration and Production Technology

But that would be "a heck of a lot of money and work to add an incremental amount of functionality," Dawson said.

Los Angeles Times

In this way we generate features that at the same time (i) take into account an incremental amount of attributes, but (ii) that work on a much smaller subset of the exponentially large set of possible combinations.

Bioinformatics

An incremental amount of CoCl2 stock solution (0.1 M) was then injected into the cuvette to give final Co2+ concentration in the range 0.04 2.0 mM.

BMC Biology

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

Whether consciously or not, employees are assessing the marginal return on any incremental amount of work.

Forbes

Morgan Stanley has called and suggested to put a small incremental amount in mutual funds, preferably something solid like an S&P 500 Index Fund.

HuffPost

As I went along my health and business journey, I adopted the one percent diet where I only focused on improving my habits by a small incremental amount each day instead of trying to hit a grand slam.

Huffington Post

But the incremental amount a buyer will pay for a home after such projects are completed is likely to be well below the seller's cost.

Forbes

Specifically, each 10-year increase in the mean age of participants corresponded, on average, to a 0.09 unit increase (95% CI 0.00 to 0.18) in the incremental amount of food or tobacco consumed as a result of exposure to larger sizes.

Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "an incremental amount" when you want to emphasize a gradual or stepwise increase, rather than a sudden or large jump. This is particularly useful in technical, financial, or scientific contexts where precision is important.

Common error

Avoid using "an incremental amount" when you actually mean a decrease. "Incremental" always implies an increase, so be sure to use "a decremental amount" or "a slight decrease" when referring to a reduction.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "an incremental amount" functions as a noun phrase, typically serving as the object of a verb or preposition. Ludwig AI confirms it’s a correct and usable phrase. It describes a quantity that is being gradually added or increased.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

50%

News & Media

50%

Formal & Business

0%

Less common in

Academia

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "an incremental amount" is a grammatically correct and usable expression, as confirmed by Ludwig. It signifies a small, gradual increase or addition, frequently appearing in both scientific and news-related contexts. While not extremely common, its precise nature makes it valuable in situations where accuracy is crucial. Remember to use it when you want to emphasize a gradual change rather than a sudden jump, and be mindful not to confuse it with "decremental". Consider alternatives like ""a slight increase"" or ""a small addition"" depending on the specific context. The sources show how it is used to describe measured changes across different fields.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

a slight increase

Focuses on the smallness of the increase.

a marginal quantity

Emphasizes the minimal impact of the amount.

a small addition

Highlights the act of adding a minor quantity.

a gradual increment

Stresses the gradual nature of the increase.

a fractional increase

Indicates a very small proportion of increase.

a modest portion

Underscores the limited size of the portion.

a measured addition

Highlights the controlled and deliberate nature of the addition.

a tiny bit

Informal way to express a very small quantity.

a touch

Suggests a very subtle and small quantity.

a soupçon

Borrowing from French, it implies a barely perceptible amount.

FAQs

How can I use "an incremental amount" in a sentence?

You can use "an incremental amount" to describe a small, gradual increase. For example: "The budget was increased by "an incremental amount" each quarter."

What's a good alternative to "an incremental amount"?

Depending on the context, you could use phrases like "a slight increase", "a marginal quantity", or "a small addition".

Is it correct to say "a incremental amount" instead of "an incremental amount"?

No, it is not correct. "Incremental" begins with a vowel sound, so it requires the indefinite article "an", not "a". The correct phrase is ""an incremental amount"".

What is the difference between "an incremental amount" and "an additional amount"?

"An incremental amount" specifically implies a gradual or stepwise increase, whereas "an additional amount" simply means that something is being added, without necessarily implying that it's happening gradually.