Adjacent Words

Impound definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

IMPOUND', v.t. [in and pound. See Pound.]
1. To put, shut or confine in a pound or close pen; as, to impound unruly or stray horses, cattle, etc.
2. To confine; to restrain within limits.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
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" [syn: impound, attach, sequester, confiscate, seize]
2: place or shut up in a pound; "pound the cows so they don't stray" [syn: impound, pound]

Merriam Webster's

transitive verb Date: 15th century 1. a. to shut up in or as if in a pound ; confine b. to seize and hold in the custody of the law c. to take possession of <she was dismissed and her manuscript impounded — Jonathan Weiner> 2. to collect and confine (water) in or as if in a reservoir

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 confiscate. 2 take possession of. 3 shut up (animals) in a pound. 4 shut up (a person or thing) as in a pound. 5 (of a dam etc.) collect or confine (water). Derivatives: impoundable adj. impounder n. impoundment n.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Impound Im*pound", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Impounded; p. pr. & vb. n. Impounding.] To shut up or place in an inclosure called a pound; hence, to hold in the custody of a court; as, to impound stray cattle; to impound a document for safe keeping. But taken and impounded as a stray, The king of Scots. --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(impounds, impounding, impounded) If something is impounded by policemen, customs officers or other officials, they officially take possession of it because a law or rule has been broken. The ship was impounded under the terms of the UN trade embargo... The police moved in, arrested him and impounded the cocaine. = confiscate VERB: be V-ed, V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. 1. Put into a pound. 2. Confine, encage, imprison, shut up, coop up.

Moby Thesaurus

annex, attach, beleaguer, beset, besiege, blockade, bottle up, bound, box in, box up, cage, chamber, check, cloister, close in, collectivize, commandeer, communalize, communize, compass, confine, confiscate, constrain, contain, coop, coop in, coop up, cordon, cordon off, cork up, corral, crib, detain, distrain, encage, encircle, enclose, encompass, enshrine, expropriate, fence in, garnish, hedge in, hem in, hold, hold in custody, hold in restraint, house in, immure, impress, imprison, incarcerate, include, inhibit, jail, keep in, keep in custody, keep in detention, kennel, leaguer, levy, mew, mew up, nationalize, pen, pen in, pen up, pocket, pound, press, quarantine, rail in, replevin, replevy, restrain, restrict, seal up, sequester, sequestrate, shackle, shrine, shut in, shut up, socialize, stable, surround, wall in, wrap, yard, yard up