as in to confront
to approach and speak to (someone) often in an angry, aggressive, or unwanted way
He was accosted by peddlers selling touristy trinkets on the street. She was so famous that people would accost her on the street and ask for an autograph.
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Recent Examples of accost
My wife has had two instances of being threatened and accosted on the streets by crazed individuals.
—
Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 10 Aug. 2025
Coristine and a woman were standing next to their car on Swann Street, several blocks from Logan Circle, when they were allegedly accosted by the multiple suspects, according to police.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2025
Police said that Porter accosted two teenage girls at about 3:25 p.m. Tuesday in unincorporated Cary.
—Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 31 July 2025
Since the demonstration, masked people with rifles have patrolled the streets of Lincoln Heights, stopping motorists and accosting a business owner.
—Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for accost
Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 10 Aug. 2025
Coristine and a woman were standing next to their car on Swann Street, several blocks from Logan Circle, when they were allegedly accosted by the multiple suspects, according to police.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2025
Police said that Porter accosted two teenage girls at about 3:25 p.m. Tuesday in unincorporated Cary.
—Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 31 July 2025
Since the demonstration, masked people with rifles have patrolled the streets of Lincoln Heights, stopping motorists and accosting a business owner.
—Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for accost
Recent Examples of Synonyms for accost
Verb
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Getting confronted with gruesome, horrific imagery has, unfortunately, become an assumed risk when logging onto social media.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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Jurors at the trial in Fort Pierce, Florida, heard from the Secret Service agent who confronted an armed Routh on the golf course before Routh fled, and a witness who identified Routh to police.—
Peter Charalambous,
ABC News,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Fraser and Schweigert also laid out a four-quadrant model on how to approach high-stakes situations.—
Katherine Fung,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
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The plane then slows down and comes to a stop as airport staff approach the jet.—
Escher Walcott,
PEOPLE,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Jessica Purcell, assistant professor in the department of entomology at the University of California, Riverside, has encountered Iberian harvester ants while studying other ant species in Italy.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
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Once released, many encounter stigma from employers, landlords, and even their communities, which fosters rejection and shame.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Accost.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/accost. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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