conscript
Americannoun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
conscriptsimple
-
conscriptssimple
-
have conscriptedperfect
-
has conscriptedperfect
-
am conscriptingprogressive
-
are conscriptingprogressive
-
is conscriptingprogressive
-
have been conscriptingperfect progressive
-
has been conscriptingperfect progressive
Past
-
conscriptedsimple
-
had conscriptedperfect
-
was conscriptingprogressive
-
were conscriptingprogressive
-
had been conscriptingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of conscript
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin conscrīptus “enrolled,” past participle of conscrībere “to enroll, enlist”; see conscribe ( def. )
Explanation
If you’re ever drafted into the army, then you could be called a conscript, someone who is forced to join the military. At the root of conscript is the Latin word conscriptus, meaning “enroll.” Conscript does involve enrollment — but it’s a forced enrollment, used to describe someone who has been forced to join the military, such as someone who has been drafted. As a verb, conscript means "force to join," like a military that conscripts new soldiers. In contrast, those who choose to join are recruited; when they enter the service, they enlist.
Vocabulary lists containing conscript
The American Civil War
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Ender's Game
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This Week in Words: January 27 - February 2, 2018
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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.
See Examples For:
The armed forces pick - and conscript - the best candidates.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
He insists his father was a forced conscript and did not support the Nazis.
From Barron's ● Jan. 21, 2026
The legislation, which was watered down from its original draft, will make it easier to identify every conscript in the country.
From Seattle Times ● May 18, 2024
He had not handled a gun since he was a teenage conscript in Hitler’s Wehrmacht at the end of World War II.
From New York Times ● Dec. 27, 2023
Azareen, fierce and stoic as she was, had one of the prettiest tattoos Sarai had seen—done by Guldan, of course, who was now a conscript in Minya’s wretched army.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
The conscripts then do up to 15 months compulsory training before going back into civilian life, in employment or higher education.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
The dumb conscripts are given instant gratification and money.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026
We joined a training session for Denmark’s conscripts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
If conscripts sign a contract to fight, they can end up on the front "within a month," Klyga said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
It was as if the elderly man’s leaving had angered him and that he held not the second soldier but the new conscripts responsible.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
One has said he was conscripted at 17 and served in a reconnaissance unit.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
But as we round the first corner, almost all of the exhibits are the work of amateurs, conscripted from civilian life and professionalized into name, rank and number.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
A full-size replica of a Spanish galleon stares out into Manila Bay, the centrepiece of a museum that will transport visitors back to the 17th century, when conscripted Philippine mariners hastened the era of globalisation.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
Kenya estimates that 252 citizens have been illegally conscripted in Russia, and last week Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi visited Moscow to address the matter.
From BBC ● Mar. 26, 2026
“We just received some bad news. The emperor has conscripted the men of a village north of here and we”—the king hesitated and glanced around warily—“and we...have friends there.”
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
As a Christian minister of an American Baptist congregation, I’ve spent more than 20 years in a pulpit — long enough to know the difference between protecting a church and conscripting one.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Temporary arrangements to continue it were formally ended by the court last year, forcing the government to begin conscripting the community.
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2026
On November 19, Israel's Supreme Court ruled that the government was required to present an effective proposal for conscripting the ultra-Orthodox.
From Barron's ● Nov. 29, 2025
Although that practice ended decades ago, the program continues to draw criticism for keeping intelligent animals in captivity and conscripting them into human war efforts.
From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2023
“But the army is conscripting all our young men.”
From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
