What does accost mean?
"Accost" is a verb meaning to approach and address someone boldly or aggressively, typically in a manner that feels intrusive, confrontational, or unwelcome. When a person is accosted, someone has stepped up to them uninvited — often demanding attention, answers, or money — and the encounter is usually unpleasant. The word appears frequently in journalism and narrative writing: witnesses are accosted by reporters, pedestrians by panhandlers, public figures by strangers with grievances. Although "accost" once carried a neutral sense of simply approaching and greeting someone, modern usage is almost entirely negative, so choosing this word signals disapproval of the approach itself. It derives from the French "accoster," meaning "to come alongside," originally a nautical term about ships drawing up beside one another — a vivid reminder that even everyday words can carry surprising histories. Writers value "accost" because it conveys both physical closeness and social transgression in a single word.
verbTo approach and address someone boldly or aggressively, often in a way that feels intrusive, confrontational, or unwelcome.
- To approach and address someone boldly or aggressively, especially in an intrusive or confrontational manner.
"A stranger accosted her outside the station, demanding to know where she had been."
"The reporter was accosted by angry fans as she left the stadium."
"He hesitated before accosting the stranger, unsure whether his question would be welcome."
Despite sounding like it belongs at sea, "accost" comes from the French for "to come alongside" — sailors' language that drifted into street confrontations.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accost
"Accost" entered English in the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century from the French "accoster," meaning "to come alongside" or "to go up to." The French verb traces back through Provençal to the Latin "ad-" ("to") combined with "costa" ("rib, side"), the same root behind the English words "coast" and "coastal." Its earliest English uses were often nautical, describing ships coming alongside one another, before the sense shifted to people approaching and addressing each other directly.
How accost is actually used
"Accost" carries a strongly negative connotation in modern usage, implying unwanted or aggressive approach; it is more common in written than casual spoken English. Historically it could be neutral (simply "to approach and greet"), but that sense is now rare or obsolete.
Easily confused with accost
"Cost" means the price or expense of something, while "accost" means to approach and address someone boldly.