seize
Americanverb (used with object)
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to take hold of suddenly or forcibly; grasp.
to seize a weapon.
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to grasp mentally; understand clearly and completely.
to seize an idea.
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to take possession of by force or at will.
to seize enemy ships.
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to take possession or control of as if by suddenly laying hold.
Panic seized the crowd.
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to take possession of by legal authority; confiscate.
to seize smuggled goods.
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Law. Also to put (someone) in seizin or legal possession of property (usually used in passive constructions).
She was seized of vast estates.
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to capture; take into custody.
- Antonyms:
- release
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to take advantage of promptly.
to seize an opportunity.
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Nautical. to bind or fasten together with a seizing.
verb (used without object)
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to grab or take hold suddenly or forcibly (usually followed by on orupon ).
to seize on a rope.
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to resort to a method, plan, etc., in desperation (usually followed by on orupon ).
He must seize on a solution, however risky.
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to have moving parts bind and stop moving as a result of excessive pressure, temperature, or friction (usually followed byup ).
The engine seized up from cold.
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to have a seizure, as of epilepsy.
He seized for about five minutes and then lost consciousness.
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(of melted chocolate) to become grainy and clumpy from overheating or from contact with a small amount of moisture (often followed byup ).
If the butter is too cold, the frosting will seize.
verb
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to take hold of quickly; grab
she seized her hat and ran for the bus
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to grasp mentally, esp rapidly
she immediately seized his idea
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to take mental possession of
alarm seized the crowd
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to take possession of rapidly and forcibly
the thief seized the woman's purse
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to take legal possession of; take into custody
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to take by force or capture
the army seized the undefended town
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to take immediate advantage of
to seize an opportunity
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nautical to bind (two ropes together or a piece of gear to a rope) See also serve
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(of mechanical parts) to become jammed, esp because of excessive heat
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to be apprised of; conversant with
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the usual US spelling of seise
Synonym Usage
See catch.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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seizesimple
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seizessimple
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have seizedperfect
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has seizedperfect
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am seizingprogressive
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are seizingprogressive
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is seizingprogressive
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have been seizingperfect progressive
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has been seizingperfect progressive
Past
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seizedsimple
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had seizedperfect
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was seizingprogressive
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were seizingprogressive
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had been seizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of seize
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English saisen, seisen, from Old French saisir, from Medieval Latin sacīre “to place” (in phrase sacīre ad propriētam “to take as one's own, lay claim to”), from Frankish, perhaps akin to Gothic satjan “to set, put, place”; see set
Explanation
Infomercial salesmen constantly tell you to seize the opportunity to buy their product while you still can. Supplies are limited! After all, everyone will want that solar-powered puppy petter, so you'd better grab the opportunity and buy two! You can seize all kinds of things. Seize the day if you are taking advantage of the present circumstances and enjoying life to the fullest. Seize the castle, if you are a feudal lord fighting with your neighbor. Seize the inspiration if you want to tell a moving story. Seize authority if you are overthrowing a small country. Avoid, at all costs, being seized if you are under zombie attack.
Vocabulary lists containing seize
"All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury
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"The People Could Fly," Vocabulary from the folk tale
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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:
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, dissenting with Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, went after the profit motive that leads agencies to seize first and justify later.
From Slate ● Jul. 28, 2026
Ordered to flee their homes as wildfires raged nearby, Spanish villagers often only had minutes to seize what they could: most pets were banned and some had no chance to grab their medicine.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
The club worked with Merseyside Police to seize the assets from organised ticket touts.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Attempting to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil-export hub, would harm the country’s oil industry but it also would put American forces directly in harm’s way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
I reached for the rope without thinking, trying to seize it from Sender’s hands so that I could haul Yakov up and keep him from drowning.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
She seizes her small opportunities to impress in the film’s second half.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Alphabet’s driverless car service seizes the World Cup stage to try to humanize its technology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
Asked about his medical condition, the report said, "Woods advised he's had seven back surgeries and over 20 operations on his leg... Woods advised he has a limp and his ankle seizes while walking."
From Barron's ● Mar. 31, 2026
Chevron maintained a now-coveted presence in Venezuela as Exxon and ConocoPhillips exited the country during waves of expropriations and asset seizes that started in the 2000s under then-President Hugo Chávez and continued under Maduro.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 7, 2026
The side of my knee barely brushes the cushion, and it seizes again.
From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day
Singapore police seized a luxury bungalow this month worth more than $40 million as part of fraud investigations linked to the alleged transfer of AI chips.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Investigators have pieced together much of what they know about Burke and Hernandez’s allegedly illegal relationship from a search of the singer’s cellphone, which was seized last September.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The Spanish government's delegate in Madrid, Francisco Martin, seized upon a forecast dip in temperatures Saturday to say "there is a real opportunity now to tackle this fire with some guarantee of success".
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
They also outlasted a Saudi-led coalition that fought for seven years to dislodge the group—a U.S.-designated terrorist organization—after it seized San’a and a swath of northwestern Yemen in a civil war.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
And indeed, even as the door slammed behind me, a spasm of coughing seized my chest and throat.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded by saying that seizing another country's assets to "pay for unrelated future claims is an incendiary precedent".
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
A state trial court ruled the forfeiture wasn’t an appropriate punishment, but in 2025 the Alaska Supreme Court said seizing the Cessna didn’t violate the Eighth Amendment’s excessive fines clause.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Constitutional safeguards normally require a court order prior to searches or seizures, and seizing a child from their parent is one of the most extreme steps the government can take.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
"For now, the objective appears to be seizing and securing the north before moving further south", an associate at the Strategic Research Institute of the International Academy for the Fight Against Terrorism told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
Eventually, however, the practice of seizing pictures ceased, and I built up my album so that it was thick with pictures of my entire family.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
