encroach








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.

verb (intr)

  1. (often foll by on or upon) to intrude gradually, stealthily, or insidiously upon the rights, property, etc, of another
  2. to advance beyond the usual or proper limits
v.

early 14c., “acquire, get,” from Old French encrochier “seize, fasten on, hang on (to), cling (to); hang up, suspend,” literally “to catch with a hook,” from en- “in” (see en- (1)) + croc “hook,” from Old Norse krokr “hook” (see crook). Meaning “seize wrongfully” is from c.1400. Sense of “trespass” is first recorded 1530s. Related: Encroached; encroaches; encroaching.

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