incur
- 01 C1 Advanced
to become responsible for paying a cost or a debt.
to become liable for a debt, expense, or penalty through one's actions. Transitive — requires a direct object such as 'costs', 'debt', or 'fees'.
Simple“You will incur a small fee if you pay your bill late.”
In context“The company incurred significant legal expenses during the three-year patent dispute, which ultimately impacted their annual profit margins.”
UsageCommonly collocates with financial nouns like 'debt', 'expense', 'cost', or 'loss'.
- 02 C1 Advanced
to experience something negative, like someone's anger or a bad reputation, because of what you did.
to bring something undesirable, such as criticism or hostility, upon oneself. Transitive — usually takes an abstract noun as an object.
Simple“His rude comments incurred the anger of his teammates.”
In context“The minister's controversial decision incurred the wrath of the public and led to widespread protests across the capital.”
UsageOften used with abstract nouns like 'wrath', 'displeasure', 'criticism', or 'dislike'.
“In a civil case such as this, the legal convention is that the losing party must reimburse "reasonable" legal fees incurred by the other side.”
“Everything he was learning, he could have found in a book, and the nine grand of annual fees was only a fraction of the total debt he was incurring.”
From Middle English incurren, from Anglo-Norman encurir, Middle French encourir, from Old French encorre, from Latin incurrere.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.