confiscate
Americanverb (used with object)
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confiscates,
present (3rd person singular)
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confiscated,
past participle, past
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confiscating
present participle
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to seize as forfeited to the public domain; appropriate, by way of penalty, for public use.
-
to seize by or as if by authority; appropriate summarily.
The border guards confiscated our movie cameras.
adjective
verb
adjective
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seized or confiscated; forfeit
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having lost or been deprived of property through confiscation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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confiscationnoun
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confiscatornoun
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reconfiscateverb (used with object)
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confiscatableadjective
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unconfiscatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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confiscatesimple
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confiscatessimple
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have confiscatedperfect
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has confiscatedperfect
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am confiscatingprogressive
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are confiscatingprogressive
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is confiscatingprogressive
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have been confiscatingperfect progressive
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has been confiscatingperfect progressive
Past
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confiscatedsimple
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had confiscatedperfect
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was confiscatingprogressive
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were confiscatingprogressive
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had been confiscatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of confiscate
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin confiscātus “seized,” past participle of confiscāre “to seize for the public treasury,” equivalent to con- con- + fisc(us) “basket, moneybag, public treasury” ( see fiscal) + -āre, verb infinitive suffix
Explanation
To confiscate means to take away temporarily for security or legal reasons. It implies an act by an authority upon one of less power. If you use your cell phone in class, the teacher might confiscate it for the day. Confiscate derives from the Latin confiscat, meaning "to store in a chest, or give to the treasury." In school, if the boys begin throwing pencils at each other, the teacher will confiscate them and "store” them in her desk. She’ll return them, however, when the boys need to take the test. That’s assuming they have not blinded each other beforehand.
Vocabulary lists containing confiscate
Persepolis
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"Fighting Hitler: A Holocaust Story," Vocabulary from the article
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Echo
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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:
Pilots who have regularly flown from Dubai recounted strict searches through metal detectors that have led security staff to confiscate everything from selfie sticks to hair spray to cups of coffee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
It said forces had worked to remove the settlers from the house, separate the groups and confiscate vehicles "that were suspected of having been used to reach the area".
From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026
The lawsuit alleges that Sheriff Robert Luna failed to confiscate Giandomenico’s phone after learning of the photos and tried to conceal from Nancy Lemus that the images existed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
In their book “Why Nations Fail,” Nobel Prize winners Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson wrote that “extractive” institutions concentrate power in the hands of an elite who then confiscate wealth from the rest of society.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026
Dinner was over, and luckily it was too late to issue me regulation boots and uniform and confiscate my own good clothing.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
It confiscates cellphones by the thousand and drones by the dozen.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
For every dollar of effort you put in, the system confiscates 70 to 100 cents,” he says.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 24, 2025
And he voted for a bill to strengthen a unique California program that confiscates guns from convicted felons who aren’t supposed to have them.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 4, 2022
The FBI comes back and confiscates the original devices, but not before Isaac made a copy of the hard drive.
From Fox News ● Oct. 15, 2020
She keeps a whole collection of the stuff she confiscates, and I don’t want my phone to be part of it.
From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina
Jara, an activist who only gave her Christian name, said police confiscated her placard.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Politico reported that one of its journalists had a credential confiscated by Secret Service.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
After their reporters had their passes confiscated and were denied access to the building, the three outlets jointly launched legal action, calling the move unconstitutional.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Jonathan Greenberger, Politico’s global editor in chief, said in an email to staff Saturday that members of the Secret Service confiscated the pass of Cheyenne Haslett, a White House reporter for the outlet.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
The civil affairs people have stacks of confiscated German chocolate in rect- angular cartons, and Marie-Laure and Madame Ruelle eat too many to count.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The authorities are confiscating families’ properties, or setting such high bail for arrested family members that people are forced to sell their possessions, she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Berlin city's government says confiscating the properties on these grounds would be the job of the Lichtenberg city district that takes in Karlshorst.
From Barron's ● Feb. 8, 2026
Natanson endured an early morning raid with federal agents performing a physical search of her home and confiscating her personal devices.
From Salon ● Jan. 17, 2026
The school may use the dashboard to identify rule-breakers in the future, but for now, teachers and staff are simply confiscating phones on sight, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2025
She’d taken the plans from Sela as if she were confiscating acorns from a baby mouse.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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.
