encumbrance

English

Alternative forms

• incumbrance (less common since about 1925)

Etymology

From Middle English encombraunce, from Old French encombrance, from encombrer.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪnˈkʌm.bɹəns/, /ɛn-/, /-bɹən(t)s/

Noun

encumbrance (countable and uncountable, plural encumbrances)

1. Something that encumbers; a burden that must be carried.
   • 1912 January, Zane Grey, chapter 8, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y., London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC:

     Some consideration was necessary to decide whether or not to leave his rifle there. On the return, carrying the girl and a pack, it would be added encumbrance […]

2. Alternative spelling of incumbrance (“in law: interest attached to a title; dependent”).
3. The state or condition of being encumbered.

Synonyms

• encumberment

Antonyms

• unencumbrance

Translations

burden

• Bulgarian: бреме (bg) n (breme), товар (bg) m (tovar)
• Danish: byrde c, belastning c, hindring c, hæmsko (da) c
• Finnish: taakka (fi)
• German: Belastung (de) f, dingliche Belastung f
• Hungarian: teher (hu), megterhelés (hu), súly (hu)
• Malayalam: ബാധ്യത (ml) (bādhyata)
• Maori: whakararu, hūnuku (refers to family members)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: belastning m or f

• Polish: obciążenie (pl) n
• Swedish: börda (sv)
• Turkish: mesuliyet (tr), sorumluluk (tr), yük (tr), engel (tr)
• Uyghur: دەردىسەر (derdiser), سېلىق (sëliq), تاپ (tap)

interest, right, burden or liability

• Bulgarian: ипотека (bg) f (ipoteka)
• Finnish: rasite (fi)
• German: Verschuldung (de) f, Schuldenlast (de) f, Grundstückslast f
• Hungarian: teher (hu), megterhelés (hu), jelzálog (hu)
• Malayalam: കുടിക്കടം (kuṭikkaṭaṁ)
• Polish: obciążenie (pl) n
• Turkish: borç (tr), ipotek (tr) (law)
• Welsh: llyffethair f

Verb

encumbrance (third-person singular simple present encumbrances, present participle encumbrancing, simple past and past participle encumbranced)

1. (law) To apply an encumbrance to (property, etc.).

References

• “encumbrance”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.