Impinge - Definitions from Dictionary.com

5 results for: Impinge

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

im·pinge

Audio Help [im-pinj] Pronunciation Key verb, -pinged, -ping·ing.

–verb (used without object)

1.	to make an impression; have an effect or impact (usually fol. by on or upon): to impinge upon the imagination; social pressures that impinge upon one's daily life.

2.	to encroach; infringe (usually fol. by on or upon): to impinge on another's rights.

3.	to strike; dash; collide (usually fol. by on, upon, or against): rays of light impinging on the eye.

–verb (used with object)

4.	Obsolete. to come into violent contact with.

[Origin: 1525–35; < ML impingere to strike against, drive at, equiv. to L im- im-¹ + -pingere, comb. form of pangere to fasten, drive in, fix; see impact

]

—Related forms

im·ping·ent, adjective

im·ping·er, noun

im·pinge·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Impinge

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

im·pinge Audio Help   (ĭm-pĭnj') Pronunciation Key
v.   im·pinged, im·ping·ing, im·ping·es

v.   intr.

To collide or strike: Sound waves impinge on the eardrum.
To encroach; trespass: Do not impinge on my privacy.

v. tr.
To encroach upon: "One of a democratic government's continuing challenges is finding a way to protect . . . secrets without impinging the liberties that democracy exists to protect" (Christian Science Monitor).

[Latin impingere : in-, against; see in-² + pangere, to fasten; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]

im·pinge'ment n., im·ping'er n.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
impinge

1535, from L. impingere "drive into, strike against," from in- "in" + pangere "to fix, fasten." Sense of "encroach, infringe" first recorded 1758.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

impinge
verb
1.	impinge or infringe upon; "This impinges on my rights as an individual"; "This matter entrenches on other domains"
2.	advance beyond the usual limit [syn: encroach]

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Impinge

Im*pact"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Impacted; p. pr. & vb. n. Impacting.] [L. impactus, p. p. of impingere to push, strike against. See Impinge.] To drive close; to press firmly together: to wedge into a place. --Woodward.

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