The word for the act of trespassing is sconfinamento. It is the combination of the verb sconfinare (meaning to trespass or to cross over) and the suffix -mento (-ment), which forms nouns that represent the action of a related verb.
Sconfinamento is masculine, and the plural is sconfinamenti.
lo sconfinamento
uno sconfinamento
gli sconfinamenti
degli sconfinamenti
I dimostranti protestarono davanti al municipio per una settimana. Tre di loro furono arrestati per sconfinamento.
Demonstrators protested outside the town hall for a week. Three of them were arrested for trespassing.
Another translation for the verb to trespass in Italian is oltrepassare and it is used specifically for properties. You will see it on signs that warn people about trespassing over a fence or train tracks, for example.
The word trespassing in English is normally used when one person or a group of people enter the property of another person without permission, but the definition of sconfinamento in Italian also extends to border violationsespecially by military troops.
Stamattina c’è stato uno sconfinamento di truppe russe sul suolo ucraino.
This morning, Russian troops violated the Ukrainian border.
You can also use sconfinamento figuratively to describe something, such as a discussion or speech, goes beyond the limits of what is morally, socially or legally acceptable.
Trovo che ci sia qualche sconfinamento nel suo libro.
I find that some parts of his book overstepped the mark.
In economics, it also means to exceed a financial target or limit. You’ll often hear the term sconfinamento bancariofor example, which is when a customer, who holds a credit line in a current account, temporarily uses an amount higher than that previously established as the maximum amount of credit. (Source: Bankpedia)
