ransack
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to search thoroughly or vigorously through (a house, receptacle, etc.).
They ransacked the house for the missing letter.
-
to search through for plunder; pillage.
The enemy ransacked the entire town.
verb
-
to search through every part of (a house, box, etc); examine thoroughly
-
to plunder; pillage
Other Word Forms
- ransacker noun
- unransacked adjective
Etymology
Origin of ransack
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English ransaken, from Old Norse rannsaka “to search, examine (for evidence of crime),” equivalent to rann “house” + saka, variant of sœkja “to search;” seek )
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.
Overton’s 32 from 21 balls and Archer’s 17-ball 38 helped the visitors ransack 100 in the last 10 overs, including 21 off the final over.
From BBC • Nov. 6, 2024
By that he meant the way representatives from other schools would surely try to lure his players away, using lucrative NIL offers to ransack his team through the transfer portal.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 19, 2024
Thursday’s announcement that Rupert Murdoch is stepping down as chairman of Fox and News Corp. prompted news organizations the world over to ransack the obituaries they have been keeping in their vaults.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 21, 2023
He said he was worried thieves would ransack whatever belongings remained, and he now lives in his car.
From Reuters • Sep. 8, 2023
Matthew’s Noise is already lurching on me like hands pressing in, forcing its way into my own thinking, trying to ransack the room.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
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.
