incur

American  

[in-kur] / ɪnˈkɜr /

verb (used with object)

incurred, incurring

1. to come into or acquire (some consequence, usually undesirable or injurious).

   to incur a huge number of debts.

2. to become liable or subject to through one's own action; bring or take upon oneself.

   to incur his displeasure.

   Synonyms:

   provoke, incite, arouse

---

incur British  

/ ɪnˈkɜː /

verb

1. to make oneself subject to (something undesirable); bring upon oneself

2. to run into or encounter

---

Other Word Forms

• incurrable
  adjective
• reincur
  verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of incur

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin incurrere “to run into, come upon,” equivalent to in- in- ² + currere “to run”; see current

Explanation

To incur is to get or receive — and usually it's something you brought upon yourself. If you don't pay your credit card bills on time, you'll likely incur lots of fees and some serious debt. Generally, when you incur something, that something is undesirable. You can incur penalties, expenses, a parking ticket, or a friend’s wrath, for example. But it's pretty unlikely that you'd incur free tickets to the World Series. Frederick Douglass once famously said, “I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence."

Example Sentences

Incur 1% in annual fees, though, and you’ll end up with barely $76,000—one-quarter less.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

In this type of situation, a “Motion to Incur Additional Debt” would need to be filed and a fee paid.

From Encyclopedia.com • Jun. 26, 2018

The reaction to the photo was probably over the top—“Pre-Peeled Bananas Incur the Wrath of Humanity,” Time’s NewsFeed blog declared, tongue in cheek.

From Slate • Oct. 9, 2012

I would not, I, For any terror of a man’s resolve, Incur the God-inflicted penalty Of doing them wrong.

From The Seven Plays in English Verse by Sophocles

"Incur your own damnation, as long as you amuse us" is often the sentiment which lurks beneath the encouragement, often flattering in appearance, of the public.

From Recollections of My Youth by Renan, Ernest

Related Words

• acquire
• arouse
• earn
• obtain
• provoke