conscript

American  

[kuhn-skript, kon-skript] / kənˈskrɪpt, ˈkɒn skrɪpt /

verb (used with object)

1. to draft for military or naval service.

   Synonyms:

   mobilize, recruit, impress, induct

2. to compel into service.

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noun

1. a recruit obtained by conscription.

adjective

1. enrolled or formed by conscription; drafted.

   a conscript soldier.

conscript British  

noun

1. 1. a person who is enrolled for compulsory military service

   2. ( as modifier )

      a conscript army

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verb

1. (tr) to enrol (youths, civilians, etc) for compulsory military service

Other Word Forms

• conscriptable adjective
• nonconscriptable adjective

Etymology

Origin of conscript

First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin conscrīptus “enrolled,” past participle of conscrībere “to enroll, enlist”; conscribe ( def. )

Example Sentences

With able-bodied German men conscripted to fight in the war, workers from the lands the Nazis occupied were drafted to meet the labor shortage.

From The Wall Street Journal

One kind and patient spectator conscripted to play the school counselor had to remove her shoe to improvise a sock puppet, one of the tools of her empathetic practice.

From Los Angeles Times

General Kundid promises a "very dynamic, very interesting" programme for the conscripts.

From BBC

In the four years that have followed, as the war has ground on and the initial patriotic fervour has died down, thousands more have been conscripted.

From BBC

It’s a more straightforward presentation that keeps audience members in their seats, except for a moment when uprising is in the air and a few theatergoers are conscripted to join the ecstatic rebellion.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• draftee