accost

verb

ac·​cost ə-ˈkȯst How to pronounce accost (audio)
-ˈkäst
accosted; accosting; accosts

transitive verb

: to approach and speak to (someone) in an often challenging or aggressive way
He was accosted by a stranger on the street.

Examples of accost in a Sentence

He was accosted by three gang members on the subway. She was so famous that people would accost her on the street and ask for an autograph.
Recent Examples on the Web But, the driver said, Mr. Trump never lunged for the steering wheel or physically accosted the agents, contradicting the most sensational and hotly disputed elements of testimony given to the House Jan. 6 committee by a White House aide. Luke Broadwater, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2024 On Friday evening, Hamlin allegedly approached the victim on the subway and accosted him with bigoted statements, the statement said. Samira Asma-Sadeque, Peoplemag, 7 Mar. 2024 Over in the Foregate, Rand goes about his duties in the psych ward, helping a sick old veteran go for a walk… until the poor guy is accosted by a cruel aide. Alex Raiman, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2023 Behar said she was forced to verbally accost a locomotive employee because the woman wouldn't let Behar, who had a coach-class ticket, use an exclusive bathroom aboard the craft. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 18 Dec. 2023 Monkeys, music, modern art, marble: stepping into the high-ceilinged entrance hall of Cordelia de Castellane’s Paris apartment, one is accosted by all four. Ellie Pithers, Vogue, 20 Feb. 2024 According to eyewitness accounts, the fan attempted to accost a fireman helping with the stretcher and ended up taking a swings at CIF Division I Tournament Director Dave Beamon and San Marcos Tournament Director Don Williams. Richard J. Marcus, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2024 The same man who shot Gill then went to a different part of town – another busy neighborhood with luxury apartments and up-scale businesses – and accosted a driver, police said. Gabe Cohen, CNN, 5 Feb. 2024 Fake Southern Accents There's nothing worse than turning on your favorite chick flick only to be accosted with a bad Southern accent. Valerie Fraser Luesse, Southern Living, 5 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'accost.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French accoster, going back to Old French, "to go alongside of, sail along the coast of, place (a vessel) beside another" (sʼacoster a "to take a place beside, draw near, support"), probably going back to Vulgar Latin *accostāre, from Latin ad- ad- + costa "rib, side" — more at coast entry 1

Note: A common, polysemous verb in Anglo-French, though the English verb, which only begins to appear in the late 16th century, is apparently borrowed directly from Continental French. The sense "to approach and speak to" only appears in French in the early 17th century, about the same time that it appears in English.

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of accost was in 1567

Dictionary Entries Near accost

Cite this Entry

“Accost.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accost. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

accost

verb
ac·​cost ə-ˈkȯst How to pronounce accost (audio)
-ˈkäst
: to approach and speak to often in a challenging or aggressive way

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