verb
encroach
in-KROHCH/ɪnˈkrəʊtʃ/
To gradually intrude beyond rightful boundaries.
Our neighbor's bushes slowly encroach on our side of the fence.
Etymology
The hook component supplied the original image of catching or seizing something. From “seize wrongfully,” the meaning broadened to gradual trespass on another person's space, rights, or time.
In context
urban sprawl is what happens when development begins to encroach on areas that had been rural we knew we were losing farmland
More examples
- Work increasingly encroaches on my free time.
- New development is encroaching on protected wetlands.
- Over the years, the driveway encroached on public land.
Forms
encroach · encroaches · encroached · encroaching
encroachment noun — Gradual intrusion on another's territory or rights.