Link Centre Dictionary

confiscate

con·fis·cate

UK/ˈkɒnfɪskeɪt/ US/ˈkɑnfəˌskeɪt/ uncommon obsolete
verb (1) adjective (2)

verb

1.

take temporary possession of as a security, by legal authority

  • “The FBI seized the drugs”
  • “The customs agents impounded the illegal shipment”
  • “The police confiscated the stolen artwork”
Synonyms

adjective

1.
2.

taken without permission or consent especially by public authority

  • “the condemned land was used for a highway cloverleaf”
  • “the confiscated liquor was poured down the drain”
Synonyms
Similar

Origin

Borrowed from Latin cōnfiscātus, the perfect passive participle of Latin cōnfiscō (“to seize for the public treasury (fiscus)”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.