impinge

[ im-pinj ]

/ ɪmˈpɪndʒ /

verb (used without object), im·pinged, im·ping·ing.

to make an impression; have an effect or impact (usually followed by on or upon): to impinge upon the imagination; social pressures that impinge upon one's daily life.

to encroach; infringe (usually followed by on or upon): to impinge on another's rights.

to strike; dash; collide (usually followed by on, upon, or against): rays of light impinging on the eye.

verb (used with object), im·pinged, im·ping·ing.

Obsolete. to come into violent contact with.

QUIZZES

THIS WEEK’S WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ IS POSITIVELY FELICIFIC

Do you study our Words of the Day with great assiduity? See how many you remember from March 3 to April 5!

Question 1 of 7

transliterate

to remove or destroy all traces of.

to change (letters, words, etc.), into corresponding characters of another alphabet or language.

to explain in terms that can be more easily understood.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of impinge

1525–35; < Medieval Latin impingere to strike against, drive at, equivalent to Latin im- im-¹ + -pingere, combining form of pangere to fasten, drive in, fix; see impact

OTHER WORDS FROM impinge

im·ping·ent, adjectiveim·ping·er, nounim·pinge·ment, nounun·im·ping·ing, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH impinge

infringe impinge

Words nearby impinge

impetus, impf., imphal, impi, impiety, impinge, impingement attack, impious, impish, impitoyable, implacable

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for impinged

Not for many nights had the past impinged so closely upon the present.
The Rainbow Trail|Zane Grey
They were running in twos and threes towards the stream, which, near this point, impinged upon the foot of the precipice.
The Rifle Rangers|Captain Mayne Reid
Often the sun would disappear behind a cloud, which impinged on its roundness, but whose edge the sun gilded in return.
Swann's Way|Marcel Proust
She literally felt these forces, as actual emanations from the strongest personality that had ever impinged upon her own.
The Thousandth Woman|Ernest W. Hornung

Even the small amount of sound which does get through is impinged on to the sides of the outer ear passage.
The Modern Pistol and How to Shoot It|Walter Winans

British Dictionary definitions for impinged

impinge

/ (ɪmˈpɪndʒ) /

verb

(intr; usually foll by on or upon) to encroach or infringe; trespassto impinge on someone's time

(intr; usually foll by on, against, or upon) to collide (with); strike

Derived forms of impinge

impingement, nounimpinger, noun

Word Origin for impinge

C16: from Latin impingere to drive at, dash against, from pangere to fasten, drive in

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

impinge

verb (used without object), im·pinged, im·ping·ing.

verb (used with object), im·pinged, im·ping·ing.

QUIZZES

THIS WEEK’S WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ IS POSITIVELY FELICIFIC

Origin of impinge

OTHER WORDS FROM impinge

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH impinge

Words nearby impinge

Words related to impinged

Example sentences from the Web for impinged

British Dictionary definitions for impinged

verb

Derived forms of impinge

Word Origin for impinge