encroaching

present participle of encroach
as in creeping
to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits each year the sea continues to encroach upon the island's beaches

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of encroaching The animal started encroaching on people’s houses day and night. — Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026 Yet the snap decision to have Danantara take over exports—announced by Prabowo in May—has unnerved analysts who worry about encroaching state control of the economy, as well as at the sovereign wealth fund. — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026 Despite their ideal of maintaining separate identities, Sarah’s sensibilities are slowly encroaching on Len’s space. — Anne Kadet, Curbed, 14 Oct. 2026 Meanwhile over 100 Palestinian communities have been displaced or erased by the settler violence and the ever-encroaching sheep. — Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 11 Oct. 2026 Against encroaching social upheavals, the sovereign was resolutely the center of a mercantilist universe. — Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026 The law is designed to give state and local authorities permission to bring down drones encroaching on airports and major venues. — Jason Gewirtz, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2026 However, the true antagonist of Forgotten Island is encroaching adulthood. — Parents, 25 Sep. 2026 Shown from above, the camera steadily encroaching like the angel of death itself, is an elderly woman in a hospital bed. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encroaching
Verb
  • Gusts of more than 60 mph are possible in parts of the Outer Banks with 40 to 50 mph gusts creeping toward the Interstate 95 corridor in North Carolina and southern Virginia.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Graduate unemployment is at 23 percent, white-collar job growth has slowed to a creeping one percent this year, and nearly a quarter of Indians between the ages of 15 and 29 are not in employment, education, or training programs.
    — Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Foreign Affairs, 15 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Starlink has become especially crucial in Ukraine, which has depended on the satellite internet system for military communications and to help launch drones against invading Russia.
    — Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 19 Oct. 2026
  • The package had been meant to starve Russian President Vladimir Putin of the resources Moscow needs to continue its war in Ukraine after invading its neighbor more than four years ago.
    — Will Weissert, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Encroaching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encroaching. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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