ENCROACH

encroach, infringe, impinge

(verb) advance beyond the usual limit

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Verb

encroach (third-person singular simple present encroaches, present participle encroaching, simple past and past participle encroached)

(transitive, obsolete) to seize, appropriate

(intransitive) to intrude unrightfully on someone else’s rights or territory

(intransitive) to advance gradually beyond due limits

Noun

encroach (plural encroaches)

(rare) Encroachment.

Anagrams

• Cochrane, charneco

Source: Wiktionary


En*croach", v. i. [imp. & p. p. Encroached; p. pr. & vb. n. Encroaching.] Etym: [OF. encrochier to perch, prop., to hook, fasten a hook (perh. confused with acrochier, F. accrocher, to hook, get hold of, E. accroach); pref. en- (L. in) + F. croc hook. See Crook, and cf. Accroach.]

Definition: To enter by gradual steps or by stealth into the possessions or rights of another; to trespass; to intrude; to trench; -- commonly with on or upon; as, to encroach on a neighbor; to encroach on the highway. No sense, faculty, or member must encroach upon or interfere with the duty and office of another. South. Superstition, . . . a creeping and encroaching evil. Hooker. Exclude the encroaching cattle from thy ground. Dryden.

Syn.

– To intrude; trench; infringe; invade; trespass.

En*croach", n.

Definition: Encroachment. [Obs.] South.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

3 May 2025

DESIRABLE

(adjective) worth having or seeking or achieving; “a desirable job”; “computer with many desirable features”; “a desirable outcome”


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Coffee Trivia

The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.

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