incursion

[ in-kur-zhuhn, -shuhn ]

/ ɪnˈkɜr ʒən, -ʃən /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incursion ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a hostile entrance into or invasion of a place or territory, especially a sudden one; raid: The bandits made brief incursions on the village.

a harmful inroad.

a running in: the incursion of sea water.

Nearby words

incur, incurable, incurious, incurrence, incurrent, incursion, incursive, incurvate, incurvation, incurve, incus

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; see excursion

SYNONYMS FOR incursion

1 sortie, foray, attack.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incursion ON THESAURUS.COM

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for incursion

Griswold was undeniably an incursion on democratic powers with a definite whiff of activism.
The Right Wing Screams for the Wambulance Over Gay Marriage Ruling|Walter Olson|October 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And I remember once there was a Nicaraguan Sandinista incursion in Honduras and the Nicaraguans denied it.
Whit Stillman on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Barcelona’, His New Amazon Series, and the Myth of the Ugly Expat|Michael Weiss|August 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And at midnight Spanish time, the Nicaraguans said, ‘Okay, we had an incursion, but it was justified.’
Whit Stillman on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Barcelona’, His New Amazon Series, and the Myth of the Ugly Expat|Michael Weiss|August 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Much of the American left is critical of Israel, particularly since its incursion into Gaza.
Even Left-Wing Politicians Can’t Quit Israel|Tim Mak|July 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Israel makes an incursion into Gaza every few years, and we always have little choice but to let it play out.
American Statesmanship Is Depressingly MIA on Border Kids, MH17 & Gaza|Michael Tomasky|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One poem narrates the circumstances of an English incursion in 1596, during which the town of Faro was stormed and sacked.
Some Jewish Witnesses For Christ|Rev. A. Bernstein, B.D.
And, for all these causes, the incursion of the Jacobites left no lasting bitterness among the British peoples.
The Eighteen Christian Centuries|James White
The first incursion of the fair Aryans from the northwest settled down, it is claimed, in the northern portions of the country.
India, Its Life and Thought|John P. Jones
When Mardonius made a second incursion into the country of Attica, the people passed over again into the isle of Salamis.
The Boys' and Girls' Plutarch|Plutarch
Hence the incursion of a new weed is generally first noticed along the highway or the railroad.
A Year in the Fields|John Burroughs

British Dictionary definitions for incursion

incursion

/ (ɪnˈkɜːʃən) /

noun

a sudden invasion, attack, or raid

the act of running or leaking into; penetration

Derived Forms

incursive (ɪnˈkɜːsɪv), adjective

Word Origin for incursion

C15: from Latin incursiō onset, attack, from incurrere to run into; see incur

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