Synonyms

poaching

American

[poh-ching] / ˈpoʊ tʃɪŋ /

noun

the illegal practice of trespassing on another's property to hunt or steal game without the landowner's permission.
any encroachment on another's property, rights, ideas, or the like.

Other Word Forms

antipoaching adjective

Etymology

Origin of poaching

First recorded in 1605–15; poach ² + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Meta has also struggled to establish itself as a top AI player compared to competitors such as Google, Anthropic and OpenAI, despite aggressively poaching top talent to form Meta Superintelligence Labs last summer.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 26, 2026

Kruger had noted a link between failed polygraph tests on its rangers and a surge in poaching, with follow-up investigations resulting in the dismissal of seven staff, it said.

From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026

Would his pace and breakdown poaching ability be as effective from the start?

From BBC • Feb. 7, 2026

Elephant populations have grown in pockets of Africa, such as Kenya and Zimbabwe, due largely to a drop in poaching.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

So far, Suzanne Braden reports, poaching has been nearly eliminated—thanks to extreme penalties that can include up to ten years behind bars.

From "Camp Panda" by Catherine Thimmesh

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023