accost

verb

ac·​cost ə-ˈkȯst 

-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

The couple's Sussex Squad online supporters spotted author Tom Bower in the audience, with one fan accosting the author. —Justin Gest, Newsweek, 11 Feb. 2025

One older man violently accosts Noam over her views, calling her a provocateur. —Marya E. Gates, IndieWire, 26 Jan. 2025

Indeed, to walk through a crowded room with Talese, 92, is to be accosted by men wanting to talk about suits. —Sadie Stein, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2025

After the video was posted online, the victim who took the video and her husband were accosted by more than a dozen suspects in the Edge of Lowry’s courtyard and parking lot area and taken to a vacant unit, Chamberlain said Friday. —Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 23 Dec. 2024

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

Kids Definition

accost

verb

ac·​cost ə-ˈkȯst 

-ˈkäst

: to approach and speak to often in a challenging or aggressive way