ransack

[ ran-sak ]

/ ˈræn sæk /

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See synonyms for: ransack / ransacker on Thesaurus.com

verb (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.

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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;” see seek)

OTHER WORDS FROM ransack

ran·sack·er, nounun·ran·sacked, adjective

Words nearby ransack

Rankin, Jeanette, rankism, rankle, rank scale, rankshift, ransack, ransom, Ransome, ransomware, rant, rant and rave

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ransack in a sentence

A few hours later, just as rioters were ransacking Congressional offices, Republican state lawmaker Daniel Cox of Maryland tweeted, “Pence is a traitor.”
The Republican Party Has Distanced Itself From The Capitol Riot. But Local GOP Officials Fueled Supporters' Rage Ahead of Jan. 6|Madeleine Carlisle|January 15, 2021|Time
Nor was there doubt that rioters had ransacked the second-floor office of the Senate parliamentarian, covering the blue carpeting by the fireplace with papers.
The Breach of the Capitol Spooked Us — As It Should Have|Philip Elliott|January 7, 2021|Time
They ransacked the National Intelligencer newspaper office, with Cockburn ordering the seizure of all the letter C’s from the presses so that the editor could no longer write nasty things about him.
In 1814, British forces burned the U.S. Capitol|Joel Achenbach|January 6, 2021|Washington Post
They ransacked offices of senior executives and looted thousands of iPhones and laptops, resulting in $7 million worth of damage and several arrests.
Apple’s first iPhone supplier in India stretched its workers too far—and they snapped|Ananya Bhattacharya|December 21, 2020|Quartz

We were ransacking Mongols, held together by scabs and duct tape, looking to pick up girls or get in a fight.
My Friend, the Murderer|Eugene Robinson|November 24, 2020|Ozy
He refilled his glass, and having looked in his cigarette-case, began to ransack a small cupboard.
Dope|Sax Rohmer
But, in truth, an English world was having cause to ransack the dust-heaps for neglected men of mettle.
Lord Ormont and his Aminta, Complete|George Meredith
For full two hours did these partisans of Matilda ransack the abbey, with none to say them nay.
A Legend of Reading Abbey|Charles MacFarlane
The capataz was the last to go, after bending on the unknown one of those glances which ransack the depths of a man's heart.
The Tiger-Slayer|Gustave Aimard
Ransack your brain, then, and see if you do not find there evidence of what I have stated.
The Woman Who Vowed|Ellison Harding

British Dictionary definitions for ransack

ransack

/ (ˈrænsæk) /

verb (tr)

to search through every part of (a house, box, etc); examine thoroughly

to plunder; pillage

Derived forms of ransack

ransacker, noun

Word Origin for ransack

C13: from Old Norse rann house + saka to search, seek

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

ransack

Origin of ransack

OTHER WORDS FROM ransack

Words nearby ransack

Words related to ransack

How to use ransack in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ransack

Derived forms of ransack

Word Origin for ransack