incur

American  

[in-kur] / ɪnˈkɜr /

verb (used with object)

• incurs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• incurred,
  past participle,  past
• incurring
  present participle

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

Derived Forms

• reincur
  verb (used with object)
• incurrable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• incurring
  present
• incurred
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• incur
  simple
• incurs
  simple
• have incurred
  perfect
• has incurred
  perfect
• am incurring
  progressive
• are incurring
  progressive
• is incurring
  progressive
• have been incurring
  perfect progressive
• has been incurring
  perfect progressive

Past

• incurred
  simple
• had incurred
  perfect
• was incurring
  progressive
• were incurring
  progressive
• had been incurring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will incur
  simple
• will have incurred
  perfect
• will be incurring
  progressive
• will have been incurring
  perfect progressive

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

See Examples For:

incur incurs incurred incurring

Of course, as so many 19th-century paintings capture, left out of this telling is that Orestes’ crimes incur the Furies’ wrath.

From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2026

At the same time, it “doesn’t mean you can’t incur business expenses that you enjoy,” he added.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Sheffield United's owners face a winding-up order in the High Court on Wednesday which could mean the club incur a 12-point deduction in the Championship this season.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

Even if the tariff money were specifically directed at debt service, it wouldn’t have done much to defray the roughly $1 trillion in interest the government will incur this year.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Territorial empires are tightly controlled but costly to maintain; hegemonic empires are inexpensive to maintain, because the original local rulers incur the costs of administration, but the loose tie between master and vassal encourages rebellion.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Paramount argues the plaintiffs should be on the hook for financial damages the company incurs while fighting the lawsuit—including a $7-million-a-day ticking fee that kicks in if the deal isn’t closed by Oct.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

"But as any sailor knows, the longer a ship is out to sea, the more problems it incurs and the harder the days become for those onboard," he added.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

If LA28 incurs massive financial losses, the city would cover the first $270 million.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

According to Fifa regulations, a red card "automatically incurs suspension from the subsequent match" but the governing body "may impose additional match suspensions and other disciplinary measures".

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

Also, even if a dangler is in no danger of being misinterpreted, enough readers have trained themselves to spot danglers that a writer who leaves it incurs the risk of being judged as slovenly.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

In recent weeks, bonds have incurred losses even when the stock market showed signs of weakness.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

Tan later counter-sued Kawshigan to claim back expenses she said she had incurred while defending herself from his alleged harassment.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

The platform has also said that perps don’t have fees that can be incurred from rolling over contracts like traditional futures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Yet over time, the project incurred an astonishing $880 million in change orders, swamping the original $1.95-billion cost estimate.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

At first, there was little change in the government’s attitude to Tycho—indeed, more money was provided later that year to cover debts that he had incurred building up the observatory.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

The exemption, known as the de minimis rule, had helped Shein and rival Temu grow rapidly as it allowed packages worth less than $800 to enter the US without incurring import duties.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026

Paramount is incurring considerable legal fees and deal-related costs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

Rather than send wheat to Minneapolis to be processed, incurring high transportation costs, farmers and the state banded together to form the North Dakota Mill, the only state-owned mill in the United States.

From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026

You don’t want to look back later and kick yourself for deferring your taxes but incurring poor returns.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Mainly he had learned that he could, occasionally at least, jump from his cage and wander around without incurring any anger or injury.

From "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien

Related Words

• acquire
• arouse
• earn
• obtain
• provoke