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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
Chris Megerian and Will Weissert, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2024
The Democrats, meanwhile, have increased their support among white-collar professionals while Republicans try to make inroads among voters who didn't attend college.
—Chris Megerian, arkansasonline.com, 5 Oct. 2024
In terms of cultural reach, Gap Inc. seems to be making inroads: for example, Gap saw a 73% increase year-on-year in influencer mentions in the two months following the launch of its collaboration with Dôen in May, according to influencer marketing platform Traacker.
—Cathleen Chen, CNN, 2 Oct. 2024
In states where cannabis isn’t fully yet, there is a concern Delta-8 will absorb part of the market before the marijuana industry has a chance to make major inroads.
—Tribune Content Agency, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for inroad 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inroad.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near inroad
Cite this Entry
“Inroad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inroad. Accessed 14 Oct. 2024.
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