| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| impinge |
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| SYLLABICATION: | im·pinge |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   m-pnj |
| VERB: | Inflected forms: im·pinged, im·ping·ing, im·ping·es
| | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To collide or strike: Sound waves impinge on the eardrum. 2. To encroach; trespass: Do not impinge on my privacy. | | TRANSITIVE VERB: | To encroach upon: “One of a democratic government's continuing challenges is finding a way to protect . . . secrets without impinging the liberties that democracy exists to protect” (Christian Science Monitor). | | ETYMOLOGY: | Latin impingere : in-, against; see in–2 + pangere, to fasten; see pag- in Appendix I. | | OTHER FORMS: | im·pingement —NOUN
im·pinger —NOUN
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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