English Meaning & Definitions
To actively break the terms of a law, agreement, or set of rules; to encroach upon someone's rights or privileges.
- “The company was sued for infringing on the patent held by its competitor.”
- “He felt that the new security measures began to infringe upon his personal privacy.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “infringe”.
Derived from the Latin 'infringere', meaning 'to break off' or 'to crush', formed by the prefix 'in-' (into/against) and 'frangere' (to break). It entered Middle English via the Old French 'enfreindre', originally referring to the physical breaking of a law or contract.
Think of 'in-fringe': If you step 'in' past the 'fringe' (the border or boundary) of someone's property or rights, you are infringing.
Frequently Asked Questions About “infringe”
1. What is the meaning of “infringe” in English?
In English, infringe (verb) is defined as: “To actively break the terms of a law, agreement, or set of rules; to encroach upon someone's rights or privileges.”.
2. How do you use “infringe” in a sentence?
“The company was sued for infringing on the patent held by its competitor.”
3. What are English synonyms of “infringe”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “infringe”?
Derived from the Latin 'infringere', meaning 'to break off' or 'to crush', formed by the prefix 'in-' (into/against) and 'frangere' (to break). It entered Middle English via the Old French 'enfreindre', originally referring to the physical breaking of a law or contract.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →A measurement of time indicating an instantaneous occurrence or a state where no time has elapsed.
The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.