One Step Over the Line

Time to discuss some words that have similar but different meanings. What’s the good word for different usages? Today, let’s look at encroach, infringe and impinge.

Infringe means “to break (a law or agreement); fail to observe the terms of; violate.” But I’ve almost never heard the word used without the addition of “on”, and when that happens the meaning changes slightly to “to break in on; encroach or trespass on (the rights, patents, etc. of others.)”


Infringe comes from the Latin infringere, which means to break off, impair, or violate. It came to English in the mid-15th century, and meant to break off for centuries. It wasn’t until 1760 that the usage (with “on”) occurred. At that point it was similar or synonymous with encroach.


Impinge means either “to strike, hit or dash, or to touch (on or upon), or have an effect (like an idea that impinges on one’s mind” or, secondly, to “make inroads or encroach (on or upon the property or rights of another).”


Impinge also comes from Latin, from impingere, which comes from in-, meaning in, and pangere, meaning to strike. Pangere comes from an IndoEuropean base word from which we get the word fang, although etymonline.com suggests it more closely aligns with impact (as in impacted teeth). It came to English in the 1530s, but as with infringe didn’t take the second meaning (of encroach) until 1758. There’s no indication of whether the encroaching taxation dispute between the colonies and England had an influence on the changing usage of either of these words.


Speaking of encroaching, encroach means to trespass or intrude especially in a gradual or sneaking way. It also means to advance beyond the proper, original, or customary limits; make inroads (in or upon).


Encroach comes from the Old French word encrochier, where the en- means in and croche refers to a hook. It was brought into Middle English as encrochen. It is the oldest English word of the three, having arrived in the early 14th century, and even developed the sense of trespass in the 1530s, about the time the word impinge arrived.


So what’s the good word today? Infringe, almost always used with “on”, means to intellectually or legally overstep someone else’s rights. Encroach has a more physical meaning. (If you sneak over a line, you encroach, you don’t infringe.) Impinge is a more active and quick word for infringe, which could be gradual. Encroach can be quick or gradual.


This shouldn’t have infringed on your day too much, and certainly didn’t impinge, although something may have impinged your mind. Nothing would have encroached, but be careful that you don’t encroach on another lane as you drive today; you wouldn’t want to be struck or dashed off the road and have to find out what law might infringe your freedom.