incur
Americanverb (used with object)
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incurs,
present (3rd person singular)
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incurred,
past participle, past
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incurring
present participle
verb
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to make oneself subject to (something undesirable); bring upon oneself
-
to run into or encounter
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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incursimple
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incurssimple
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have incurredperfect
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has incurredperfect
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am incurringprogressive
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are incurringprogressive
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is incurringprogressive
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have been incurringperfect progressive
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has been incurringperfect progressive
Past
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incurredsimple
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had incurredperfect
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was incurringprogressive
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were incurringprogressive
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had been incurringperfect progressive
Future
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."
Vocabulary lists containing incur
Make a Run for It: Cur, Curs
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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
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"A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Strong demand for new models based on the firm's Neue Klasse platform meanwhile meant the company would incur charges to bring in extra shifts, it said.
From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026
The company expects to incur one-time charges that will be quantified at a later date.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
Speedier installations shorten the period during which customers incur data center expenses without generating revenue.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
The proposition also could incur additional costs for state and local governments depending on the attorney general’s interpretation of what constitutes program expenses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Some real estate agents worry that the hyper-rich will resent the tax, but so far wealthy homebuilders seem to regard it as a pittance compared with the other costs they incur.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
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
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
Encrypting and decrypting your traffic as you go about your online business incurs a cost, resulting in a speed hit on your connection.
From Salon ● Jun. 2, 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
After his round, McIlroy told reporters that he had "made peace" with the circumstances around the two-shot penalty he had incurred on Thursday and felt free to go out and post a good score.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026
The commitments include approximately $447.5 billion expected to be incurred before the end of 2030; substantially all the rest is likely to hit between 2031 and 2045.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
As if Albon was not already having a rough season, to top it he incurred the wrath of Fernando Alonso in Austin after the two collided on the first lap, leaving both with damaged cars.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
That’s up from the 8% those transactions previously incurred when treated as ordinary orders on ByteDance’s Douyin video app.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026
Years later, Theodore Parker incurred the wrath of the pro-slavery forces in the country.
From "Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad" by Ann Petry
Ben says he's reached an agreement to pause the interest on most of it, but he is still incurring charges on around £2,000 of credit card debt and is worried about his repayments going up.
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
Without sounding callous, my thought is that, given her prognosis, she may be better off not selling the condo and incurring the capital-gains tax.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
Three major airlines -- JetBlue, United and American -- issued travel alerts allowing passengers to change their flights without incurring fees.
From Barron's ● Sep. 25, 2026
Despite his efforts to avoid incurring the wrath of Uncle Sam, Marset eventually came into the crosshairs of the DEA.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 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
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
