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impound

[verb im-pound; noun im-pound]
verb (used with object)
  1. to shut up in a pound or other enclosure, as a stray animal.
  2. to confine within an enclosure or within limits: water impounded in a reservoir.
  3. to seize and retain in custody of the law, as a document for evidence.
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noun
  1. money, property, etc., that has been impounded: a sale of impounds by the police department.
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Origin of impound

First recorded in 1545–55; im-3 + pound3
Related formsim·pound·a·ble, adjectiveim·pound·er, nounun·im·pound·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for impounding

imprison, seize, keep, pen, enclose, take, hold, cage

Examples from the Web for impounding

Historical Examples of impounding

British Dictionary definitions for impounding

impound

verb (tr)
  1. to confine (stray animals, illegally parked cars, etc) in a pound
    1. to seize (chattels, etc) by legal right
    2. to take possession of (a document, evidence, etc) and hold in legal custody
  3. to collect (water) in a reservoir or dam, as for irrigation
  4. to seize or appropriate
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Derived Formsimpoundable, adjectiveimpoundage or impoundment, nounimpounder, noun
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

Word Origin and History for impounding

impound

v.

early 15c., "to shut up in a pen or pound," from assimilated form of in- "into, in" (see in- (2)) + pound (n.). Originally of cattle seized by law. Related: Impounded; impounding.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper