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

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incur British  

/ ɪnˈkɜː /

verb

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

2. to run into or encounter

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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”; 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

A new England shirt priced at £104.99 would also incur £17.50 worth of VAT.

From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026

Paramount has $54 billion in bank financing and $47 billion in equity for the merger, but will incur nearly $80 billion in debt.

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

In addition, “lower-income respondents and respondents with disabilities are more likely to go without care and incur debt due to health care costs,” the researchers said.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 13, 2026

The more we play into it, the more division we incur.

From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026

They slunk into the room, each trying to hide behind the other, knowing that the poor results of their search were likely to incur the Chief’s wrath.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

Related Words

• acquire
• arouse
• earn
• obtain
• provoke