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Inroad is a combination of in and road, both of which are pretty mundane, as far as words go. But the first-and-oldest-meaning of inroad hints at a meaning of road other than the "way for traveling" one. Beginning back in the days of Old English, road referred to an armed hostile incursion made on horseback. (Raid comes from this use of road and also formerly specified incursions on horseback.) Road, as well as inroad, has lost its violent connotation. While inroads are often made at the expense of someone or something, they are at times simply advances, as when an artist is said to be "making inroads into a community."
Examples of inroad in a Sentence
semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2025
Debuting Monday in Rimowa stores worldwide and on its online store, the new Groove Collection sees the German suitcase specialist chart further inroads into products for everyday, urban mobility.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 22 Sep. 2025
At the time, Disney was keen on making further inroads into China.
—Shirley Halperin, Rolling Stone, 19 Sep. 2025
Segura has made inroads with her music career as well, including mentorship from Boyz II Men's Wanya Morris, and singing a medley of Mariah Carey songs, with Carey in the audience, at Carey's Songwriters Hall of Fame induction in 2022.
—Piet Levy, jsonline.com, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inroad
Cite this Entry
“Inroad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inroad. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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