# intrusive

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ɪnˈtɹuːsɪv/ · frequency rank #18,861

## Definitions
1. Tending to intrude; doing that which is not welcome; interrupting or disturbing; entering without permission or welcome.
2. Of rocks: forced, while in a plastic or molten state, into the cavities or between the cracks or layers of other rocks.
3. epenthetic
4. Designating a type of collection in which each item keeps track of what collection it is in, rather than the more conventional approach of a collection keeping track of what items it contains. An intrusive collection does not "own" its contents and a single item can be part of multiple intrusive collections.

## Etymology
Back-formation from intrusion, + -ive.

## Easily confused with
- **intensive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensive-vs-intrusive)
- **inclusive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/inclusive-vs-intrusive)
- **intrusion** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intrusion-vs-intrusive)

## Common misspellings (13)
`inntrusive`, `inrtusive`, `intrrusive`, `intrsuive`, `intruisve`, `intrusiev`, `intrusivve`, `intrussive`, `intrusvie`, `inttrusive`, `intursive`, `itnrusive`, `nitrusive`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/intrusive