Meaning & use
expropriate
To officially take property or assets away from an owner, usually by a government, often for public use.
See it in a sentence
The government expropriated the farmland to build a new highway.
Foreign investors worried the regime might expropriate their factories without fair compensation.
A note on using this word
Expropriate implies formal, often forced, government action, distinct from a private purchase or voluntary sale.
Words with a similar meaning
seizeconfiscate
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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