incursion

American  

[in-kur-zhuhn, -shuhn] / ɪnˈkɜr ʒən, -ʃən /

noun

1. a hostile entrance into or invasion of a place or territory, especially a sudden one; raid.

   The bandits made brief incursions on the village.

   Synonyms:

   attack, foray, sortie

2. a harmful inroad.

3. a running in.

   the incursion of sea water.

---

incursion British  

/ ɪnˈkɜːsɪv, ɪnˈkɜːʃən /

noun

1. a sudden invasion, attack, or raid

2. the act of running or leaking into; penetration

---

Other Word Forms

• incursive adjective

Etymology

Origin of incursion

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin incursiōn- (stem of incursiō ) raid, equivalent to incurs ( us ) (past participle of incurrere to incur ) + -iōn- -ion; excursion

Example Sentences

An anti-corruption purge in the army has also not deterred Beijing from increasing its number of incursions into Taiwan's air defence zone.

From Barron's

Ukraine's Western allies have increasingly looked to Kyiv's experience after Russian drones made repeat incursions into European airspace in recent months.

From Barron's

The people of Minneapolis have displayed remarkable communal character in their relentless and peaceful battle against the government’s incursion into their private life.

From Los Angeles Times

At the meeting, U.S. officials stressed the need for greater coordination to stop drone incursions into U.S. airspace.

From Los Angeles Times

When Tuchel accepted the England job, it was his first incursion into the international arena.

From BBC

Related Words

• aggression
• attack
• foray
• infiltration
• inroad
• intrusion
• penetration
• raid