expropriate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to take possession of, especially for public use by the right of eminent domain, thus divesting the title of the private owner.
The government expropriated the land for a recreation area.
-
to dispossess (a person) of ownership.
The revolutionary government expropriated the landowners from their estates.
-
to take (something) from another's possession for one's own use.
He expropriated my ideas for his own article.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
de-expropriationnoun
-
expropriationnoun
-
expropriatornoun
-
expropriableadjective
-
expropriationistadjective
-
unexpropriableadjective
-
unexpropriatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
expropriatesimple
-
expropriatessimple
-
have expropriatedperfect
-
has expropriatedperfect
-
am expropriatingprogressive
-
are expropriatingprogressive
-
is expropriatingprogressive
-
have been expropriatingperfect progressive
-
has been expropriatingperfect progressive
Past
-
expropriatedsimple
-
had expropriatedperfect
-
was expropriatingprogressive
-
were expropriatingprogressive
-
had been expropriatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of expropriate
1605–15; from Medieval Latin expropriātus “separated from one's own” (past participle of expropriāre ), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + propri(āre) “to appropriate” (derivative of proprius proper ) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Use the verb expropriate to describe the act of taking people's property, usually by a government. If you really like your neighbor's house, you may wish you could expropriate the property. To correctly pronounce expropriate, say "ex-PRO-pree-ate." It sounds a lot like another verb, appropriate and has a similar meaning. That's because of their shared Latin root proprius, which means "own." Expropriate is typically used to describe taking property — rather than smaller possessions — and a government or other official organization is usually the one doing the taking. For example, a state may expropriate property in order to build a new road.
Vocabulary lists containing expropriate
This Week In Words: August 31–September 6, 2019
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 1
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
List 4
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
For lawyer and activist Arif Ali Cangi, the legislation approved in July, which allows companies to expropriate or rezone agricultural land for mining, will only aggravate the situation.
From Barron's ● May 15, 2026
The difficulties arise because the acquirer can’t simply expropriate an investor-owned utility’s assets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
Chilean Minister for Justice and Human Rights Jaime Gajardo Falcón told the BBC that the government took the decision to expropriate the area in which the main buildings of the ex-colony are concentrated.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2025
Lopez Obrador has clashed with Grupo Mexico this year, and in May moved to expropriate some tracks the company controls in southern Mexico for a flagship infrastructure project.
From Reuters ● Sep. 20, 2023
In his opinion the remedy for agrarian trouble in Ireland was that the State should, after rigid and impartial enquiry, distinguish between good landlords and bad, and then expropriate the bad ones.
From Matthew Arnold by Russell, George William Erskine
The agency in charge of approving these pipelines—the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC—is reconsidering how eminent domain, by which the government legally expropriates private property for public purposes, is used.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2018
"Gentlemen!" he says reprovingly, as he expropriates a bottle and glass from a giant paw.
From Time Magazine Archive
The one piece of legislation that carries his name� the Hickenlooper Amendment to the 1962 foreign aid bill�cuts off aid to any country that expropriates U.S. property.
From Time Magazine Archive
By thus throwing men out of work, the instrument of labor lowers wages and expropriates the laborer from his means of existence.
From Socialism, Revolution and Internationalism by Deville, Gabriel
Most of the wealth accruing to the companies monetizing it has been expropriated by them.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
Potentially more problematic will be calls for compensation payments to U.S. companies and individuals — many in south Florida — whose property was expropriated after the revolution.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026
Their assets were expropriated by the new government of Fidel Castro.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026
Exxon had a long history in Venezuela, but it ended abruptly in 2007, when former President Hugo Chávez expropriated the company’s assets.
From Barron's ● Jan. 12, 2026
Tres Marias was one of the last haciendas in the South to be expropriated under the agrarian reform.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
The legal victory was rare for Argentina, which has for years faced and lost lawsuits after breaching contracts, from expropriating companies to defaulting on bonds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026
Venezuela was ordered to pay ConocoPhillips $8.7 billion by an international arbitration panel External link in 2019 for unlawfully expropriating the company’s oil investments.
From Barron's ● Jan. 5, 2026
But as Castro began expropriating properties, hopes for eclectic new construction were dashed.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 24, 2022
An international tribunal has ruled that the Russian government owes onetime energy giant Yukos Oil $5 billion in compensation for illegally expropriating its assets and denying it justice in Russian courts.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 29, 2021
The contract also guarantees to the company the assistance of the provincial government in expropriating the owners of all coal mines which have been granted to other companies but not yet worked.
From China, Japan and the U.S.A. Present-Day Conditions in the Far East and Their Bearing on the Washington Conference by Dewey, John
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.
