Confiscate

//ˈkɑnfəˌskeɪt// adj, verb

adj, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To use one's authority to lay claim to and separate a possession from its holder. transitive

    "In schools, it is common for teachers to confiscate electronic games and other distractions."

  2. 2
    take temporary possession of as a security, by legal authority wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Confiscated; seized and appropriated by the government for public use; forfeit. not-comparable, obsolete

    "Therefore give out you are of Epidamnum, / Lest that your goods too soon be confiscate."

Adjective
  1. 1
    surrendered as a penalty wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
appropriateimpoundaccroachannexappropriatearrogate

Example

More examples

"The US customs wanted to confiscate Australian Foreign Minister's Vegemite."

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cōnfiscātus, the perfect passive participle of Latin cōnfiscō (“to seize for the public treasury (fiscus)”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.