confiscatory

American  

[kuhn-fis-kuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / kənˈfɪs kəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

adjective

1. characterized by, effecting, or resulting in confiscation.

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confiscatory British  

/ kənˈfɪskətərɪ, -trɪ /

adjective

1. involving confiscation

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Other Word Forms

• unconfiscatory adjective

Etymology

Origin of confiscatory

First recorded in 1790–1800; confiscate + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

Three considerations coincide to make it especially clear that the California proposal is confiscatory.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 22, 2026

They argue it is confiscatory and violates the regional government's autonomy, according to a lawyer's draft for the appeal seen by Reuters.

From Reuters • May 17, 2023

Billionaire Peter Thiel, a founder of PayPal, has publicly condemned "confiscatory taxes."

From Salon • Jun. 25, 2021

By any measure, this extended lack of vehicle activity has translated into a significant boost to insurers’ bottom lines, bordering on the confiscatory, primarily due to that dramatic dip in accident claims.

From Washington Times • Apr. 16, 2021

To also tax annually the value of proceeding years' production, like taxing a wheat crop twice a week, is exactly the confiscatory prohibition of forest growing which we should seek to avoid.

From Practical Forestry in the Pacific Northwest Protecting Existing Forests and Growing New Ones, from the Standpoint of the Public and That of the Lumberman, with an Outline of Technical Methods by Allen, Edward Tyson