confiscate

American  

[kon-fuh-skayt, kuhn-fis-kit] / ˈkɒn fəˌskeɪt, kənˈfɪs kɪt /

verb (used with object)

• confiscates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• confiscated,
  past participle,  past
• confiscating
  present participle

1. to seize as forfeited to the public domain; appropriate, by way of penalty, for public use.

2. to seize by or as if by authority; appropriate summarily.

   The border guards confiscated our movie cameras.

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adjective

1. seized or appropriated, as for public use.

confiscate British  

/ ˈkɒnfɪˌskeɪt /

verb

1. to seize (property), esp for public use and esp by way of a penalty

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adjective

1. seized or confiscated; forfeit

2. having lost or been deprived of property through confiscation

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• confiscation
  noun
• confiscator
  noun
• reconfiscate
  verb (used with object)
• confiscatable
  adjective
• unconfiscated
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• confiscating
  present
• confiscated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• confiscate
  simple
• confiscates
  simple
• have confiscated
  perfect
• has confiscated
  perfect
• am confiscating
  progressive
• are confiscating
  progressive
• is confiscating
  progressive
• have been confiscating
  perfect progressive
• has been confiscating
  perfect progressive

Past

• confiscated
  simple
• had confiscated
  perfect
• was confiscating
  progressive
• were confiscating
  progressive
• had been confiscating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will confiscate
  simple
• will have confiscated
  perfect
• will be confiscating
  progressive
• will have been confiscating
  perfect progressive

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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

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

confiscate confiscates confiscated confiscating

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

"This is an attack on my private ownership and my artist's work... if they confiscate it," he told AFP.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

In February, Curtis was the first person to publicly announce Bianco planned to confiscate the ballots.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

England acquired such institutions with the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89 after which the king could no longer suspend laws, raise taxes without the consent of Parliament, or arbitrarily confiscate private property.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026

They sent staff members into Studio One to confiscate all scripts of the radio play.

From "Spooked!" by Gail Jarrow

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

“Security confiscates all phones when you enter the building.”

From "City Spies" by James Ponti

According to the San Diego action, more than half of all ghost guns recovered in the U.S. are confiscated in California.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

His Apple Watch was still linked to his iPhone, which hours earlier had been confiscated by the officers now sleeping next door.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Klein similarly reported that her credential had been deactivated, while Politico said Haslett’s badge was confiscated.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026

In one example, a truck driver from South Africa was told to fly to Moscow for a driving job and had "everything" confiscated from him upon arrival, Amnesty's report said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Without comment she confiscated my sad bowl of bran crumbs and handed it to me.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

The government, which launched a crackdown on waste crime last week, said it would do more to force criminals to pay for clean-up operations by confiscating their money and assets.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

But the answer isn’t confiscating the screen that replaced the world I grew up in.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026

Venezuela nationalized its oil industry in 1976, confiscating foreign assets, and again in 2007, impacting companies like Exxon.

From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 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

“Which I will be confiscating, by the way. Security is going to be tighter than ever now. This place will be Fort Knox.”

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

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Related Words

• appropriate
• expropriate
• impound

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