Date:    Fri, 26 Jun 1998 13:55:09 +0000
<br>From:    Jim Rader <jrader[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]M-W.COM>
<br>Subject: Re: "incent"
<br>
<br>We have not a lot of material on the verb _incent_:  five printed
<br>cites, the earliest being June, 1993, and several comments made to
<br>the Editiorial Dept. in reader letters and postings to our AOL
<br>suggestion box.  The earliest such report is an interoffice memo inquiring
<br>about the word from the former president of Merriam to the
<br>editor-in-chief (Jan., 1992).  _Incent_ seems to be advertising- and
<br>sales department-speak, which has probably been underrepresented in
<br>past reading and marking here, especially during the '80's, when the
<br>Merriam staff was small.
<br>
<br>I had meaning to do a Nexis search on _incent_, but Fred Shapiro has
<br>done it for me.  My Nexis searching lately has been devoted to
<br>_Portobello (mushroom)_.  If anybody on the list has a pet theory
<br>explaining this name, let me know.  I have only one rather tentative
<br>hypothesis at present.
<br>
<br>Jim Rader
<br>