Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Popular Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

ENCROACHER

 - 4 dictionary results

en⋅croach

  [en-krohch]
Use ENCROACHER in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to advance beyond proper, established, or usual limits; make gradual inroads: A dictatorship of the majority is encroaching on the rights of the individual.
2. to trespass upon the property, domain, or rights of another, esp. stealthily or by gradual advances.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME encrochen < AF encrocher, OF encrochier to catch hold of, seize, equiv. to en- en- 1 + -crochier, v. deriv. of croc hook < Gmc; see crooked, crook

Related forms:
en⋅croach⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1, 2. See trespass.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To ENCROACHER
en·croach   (ěn-krōch')   
intr.v.   en·croached, en·croach·ing, en·croach·es

  1. To take another's possessions or rights gradually or stealthily: encroach on a neighbor's land.

  2. To advance beyond proper or former limits: desert encroaching upon grassland.

  3. Football To commit encroachment.


[Middle English encrochen, to seize illegally, from Old French encrochier, to seize : en-, in; see en-1 + croc, hook (of Germanic origin).]
en·croach'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

encroach 
c.1325, from O.Fr. encrochier "seize, fasten on, perch," lit. "to catch with a hook," from en- "in" + croc "hook," from O.N. krokr "hook." Sense of "trespass" is first recorded c.1534.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: en·croach
Pronunciation: in-'krOch
Function: intransitive verb
Etymology: Anglo-French encrocher, probably alteration of acrocher to catch hold of, seize, usurp, from Old French, from a-, prefix stressing goal + croc hook
: to enter esp. gradually or stealthily into the possessions or rights of another <encroaches on an adjoining property>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see ENCROACHER on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way