Encroachment is a phenomenon generated by the existence of an increasing rural population with a large component of immigrants and refugees from neighbouring countries. encroachment noun intrusion, invasion, violation, infringement, trespass, incursion, usurpation, inroad, impingement This is a sign of the encroachment of commercialism in medicine. Encroachment definition: an act or instance of encroaching.. See examples of ENCROACHMENT used in a sentence. Encroachment is the act of slowly affecting or using up too much of somebody's time, rights, personal life, etc. or the act of slowly covering more and more of an area. Learn how to use this word in different contexts with pictures, pronunciation and synonyms.