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Inroad is a combination of in and road, both of which are pretty mundane, as far as words go. But the first-and-oldest-meaning of inroad hints at a meaning of road other than the "way for traveling" one. Beginning back in the days of Old English, road referred to an armed hostile incursion made on horseback. (Raid comes from this use of road and also formerly specified incursions on horseback.) Road, as well as inroad, has lost its violent connotation. While inroads are often made at the expense of someone or something, they are at times simply advances, as when an artist is said to be "making inroads into a community."
Examples of inroad in a Sentence
David Moin, WWD, 16 Dec. 2024
Harris won 54% of voters under 30, but Trump made inroads.
—Fin Gómez, CBS News, 16 Dec. 2024
Fernan Amandi, a political consultant who has done polling for Democrats in the past, said the party neglected to make inroads with communities that supported them in the past.
—Rebecca Morin, USA TODAY, 8 Dec. 2024
The key voting bloc largely supported President Biden in 2020, but President-elect Trump was able to make inroads with Black men in particular this cycle.
—Juliann Ventura, The Hill, 6 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for inroad 
Dictionary Entries Near inroad
Cite this Entry
“Inroad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inroad. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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