confiscate
[ verb kon-fuh-skeyt; adjective kuhn-fis-kit ]
/ verb ˈkɒn fəˌskeɪt; adjective kənˈfɪs kɪt /
Save This Word!
verb (used with object), con·fis·cat·ed, con·fis·cat·ing.
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
seized or appropriated, as for public use.
QUIZ
ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?
We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.
Question 1 of 8
Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?
Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing
Origin of confiscate
OTHER WORDS FROM confiscate
Words nearby confiscate
confirmation hearings, confirmatory, confirmed, confirmee, confiscable, confiscate, confiscatory, confit, Confiteor, confiture, conflagrant
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use confiscate in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for confiscate
confiscate
/ (ˈkɒnfɪˌskeɪt) /
verb (tr)
to seize (property), esp for public use and esp by way of a penalty
adjective
seized or confiscated; forfeit
having lost or been deprived of property through confiscation
Derived forms of confiscate
confiscation, nounconfiscator, nounWord Origin for confiscate
C16: from Latin confiscāre to seize for the public treasury, from fiscus basket, treasury
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012