encroach
Use Encroach 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, especially stealthily or by gradual advances.
Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English encrochen < Anglo-French encrocher, Old French encrochier to catch hold of, seize, equivalent to en- en-1 + -crochier, verbal derivative of croc hook < Germanic; see crooked, crook
1275–1325; Middle English encrochen < Anglo-French encrocher, Old French encrochier to catch hold of, seize, equivalent to en- en-1 + -crochier, verbal derivative of croc hook < Germanic; see crooked, crook
Related forms
en·croach·er, noun
un·en·croached, adjective
un·en·croach·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To encroach
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Encroach
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is yaff. Does it mean:
| to bark; yelp. |
| to flee; abscond: |
Collins
World English Dictionary
encroach (ɪnˈkrəʊtʃ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb (often foll by on | |
| 1. | to intrude gradually, stealthily, or insidiously upon the rights, property, etc, of another |
| 2. | to advance beyond the usual or proper limits |
| [C14: from Old French encrochier to seize, literally: fasten upon with hooks, from | |
| en'croacher | |
| —n | |
| en'croachingly | |
| —adv | |
| en'croachment | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
encroach
early 14c., 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 1530s. Related: Encroached; encroaches; encroaching.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
The encroach of evil is slow and methodical, but it will not be denied.
Opponents say the law will encroach on privacy and jeopardize civil liberties.
Requests for ingress into the right of way requires the completion of an application to encroach.
There has to be a good reason to encroach on individual freedom and autonomy.
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