All words

incur

Meaning

To experience or be subjected to something undesirable, typically a consequence or liability, as a result of one's own actions or circumstances.

Examples by difficulty

Basic: Simple, everyday vocabulary — the easiest to read.

He didn't listen to the warnings and now he'll incur the full penalty. He'll have to pay a huge fine and deal with all the trouble he caused himself. This is what happens when you don't think ahead.

After accidentally spilling the entire container of bioluminescent algae into the primary coolant system, the deep-sea research station was sure to incur significant repair costs and potential mission delays. The team sighed, already feeling the heavy weight of their mistake.

The clumsy fumbler, juggling fragile ceramic gnomes, knew they would soon incur the landlord's wrath. Each dropped shard echoed the inevitable lecture and the costly repair bill. Their butterfingers promised a bad outcome.

After wearing his lucky socks to bed, Bob woke up to find he'd incur the wrath of a sock-eating monster under his bed. He’d hoped for good grades, but instead, he got a laundry bill that made his eyes water and a very confused cat.

Barnaby, after attempting to juggle three live eels while wearing roller skates, began to incur a rather slimy and slippery predicament. He’d definitely incurred a lot of unscheduled flopping and a distinct smell of brine.

Normal: Standard, everyday language.

He knew skipping class would incur his parents' wrath, but the allure of the concert was too strong. Now, facing their disappointed stares and the stern lecture, he understood the price of his impulsiveness.

Ignoring the faulty wiring and cheap sealant, Marcus plunged the industrial humidifier into the cramped closet. He knew he might incur a hefty fine from the building inspector, not to mention the lingering scent of mildew if it went unnoticed.

After spending the entire winter tinkering with the outdated atmospheric condenser, Leo knew he would likely incur massive repair costs come spring. He'd ignored the flickering warning lights, convinced he could fix it himself. Now, the humming had stopped entirely.

I can't believe I ate the entire gallon of ice cream in one sitting. Now I'm going to incur a serious stomach ache and probably have to buy a new pair of pants because of the immediate expansion. My pants are already feeling tight, and it's only been an hour.

Barry decided his prized pet rock deserved a tiny, hand-knitted sombrero. Unfortunately, the yarn, a surprisingly potent chili pepper blend, caused his fingers to swell to comical proportions. He now had to incur the indignity of explaining his puffy, pepper-hued digits at the knitting circle meeting.

Advanced: Richer vocabulary that stretches an upper-level reader.

He knew his reckless spending would eventually cause problems, but he brushed off the warnings. Now, facing mounting debts and the threat of eviction, he had to incur the full brunt of his own poor decisions. The anxiety settled in, a heavy weight in his chest.

He stared at the shattered lens of the ancient astrolabe. He knew, with a sinking feeling, he would incur the full wrath of Master Eldrin. His careless tinkering, an attempt to recalibrate its celestial readings, had instead fractured the delicate crystal, a costly mistake born of his own impatience.

After weeks of meticulous data analysis, the lead researcher realized a subtle error in the initial calibration. They would now incur significant delays and have to reprocess the entire experimental batch. The team's morale plummeted.

Barry, a notoriously clumsy wizard, was notorious for misplacing his spell components. This evening, attempting a levitation charm on his teacup, he managed to incur a cascade of enchanted glitter bombs, burying himself in a sparkly, suffocating mess. He definitely wasn't expecting that particular outcome.

Bartholomew, a renowned inventor of self-folding laundry machines, managed to incur the ire of his entire neighborhood when a prototype malfunctioned, aggressively re-folding all visible undergarments in a fifty-yard radius, creating a surreal, cotton-based tempest of underpants.

Challenging: Rare, high-register vocabulary for serious word lovers.

Ignoring all prudent advice, he chose the riskier path, expecting a swift windfall. Instead, his imprudent gambit caused him to incur a significant debt, leaving him in dire straits and facing austere consequences.

He knew the dire repercussions of his improvident dealings. Now, the magistrates would certainly incur his meager inheritance. His reckless gambits, once lauded as sagacious, had culminated in this ignominious and irreversible forfeiture.

After stubbornly disregarding the structural integrity warnings on the ancient automaton, Elias began to incur a cascade of malfunctions. Sparks flew from its optical sensors, and its articulated limbs spasmed erratically. He’d certainly incurred a vexing predicament, his own intransigence leading to this mechanical pandemonium.

Bartholomew, a man of prodigious indolence and even grander culinary ambitions, decided to ferment mystery berries in his attic. He did not anticipate the olfactory cacophony that would soon incur, nor the swarms of irate, fruit-fly-laden pigeons that would subsequently besiege his domicile, mistaking it for a particularly pungent banquet hall.

Bartholomew, the beleaguered curator of rare lint, attempted to excavate a particularly prodigious ball of fluff from a Victorian chaise lounge, only to incur the wrath of a dormant colony of silverfish, who promptly feasted upon his tweed trousers.

Difficulty

Normal — Everyday words worth reinforcing.

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