ransack

verb

ran·sack ˈran-ˌsak How to pronounce ransack (audio)

(ˌ)ran-ˈsak

ransacked; ransacking; ransacks

transitive verb

: to look through thoroughly in often a rough way

… he and 15 staff members watched agents ransack the office.

Christian Caryl et al.

In desperation, I ransacked my refrigerator for something else to whip up.

Dana Bowen

(figurative) Most novelists ransack their lives for that first novel; it might be called involuntary reporting.

Tom Wolfe

: to search through and steal from in a forceful and damaging way : plunder

Thieves ransacked the house.

Louis XVI was persuaded to risk a navy far from its own shores and to ransack the French arsenals for arms and ammunition …

C. P. Reynolds

ransacker noun

Did you know?

Ransack carries the image of a house being roughly disarranged, as might happen when you are frantically searching for something. This is appropriate given the word's origin. Ransack derives, via Middle English ransaken, from Old Norse rannsaka; the rann in rannsaka means "house." The second half of rannsaka is related to an Old English word, sēcan, meaning "to seek." But our modern use of the word isn't restricted to houses. You can ransack a drawer, a suitcase, or even the contents of a book (for information). A now-obsolete frequentative form of ransack, ransackle, gave us our adjective ramshackle.

Example Sentences

Robbers ransacked the apartment looking for money. The room had been ransacked.

Recent Examples on the Web In one version, Joe Biden’s banana-republic thugs invade the home of a blameless former president and ransack his wife’s dress closet.

Lance Morrow, WSJ, 14 Aug. 2022 Gajhabuka is identified as one of three accomplices who proceeded to ransack the dispensary’s shelves, according to court records, before fleeing in a getaway car.

oregonlive, 4 Aug. 2022 Witnesses cited Trump's tweet Dec. 19, 2020, amid disputes among his legal advisers as an invitation to ransack the Capitol weeks later.

Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 12 July 2022 Yet Eastman continued the pressure even during the riot, while Pence and lawmakers huddled in safe rooms as hundreds of people battled with police and broke windows to enter and ransack the building.

Sarah D. Wire, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2022 Thieves steal from about 90 cargo containers a day; sometimes an organized group halts trains and recruits people living on the street to ransack the containers.

Amy Hubbard, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2022 Guerrero estimates that about 90 cargo containers a day are compromised, sometimes by an organized group that has halted trains and recruited people living on the street to ransack the containers.

Rachel Uranga, oregonlive, 17 Jan. 2022 The committee was established to investigate the circumstances that caused a pro-Trump mob to ransack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, briefly stopping lawmakers from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Matthew Brown, USA TODAY, 11 Jan. 2022 In such cases, several robbers swarm a store, ransack the shelves and run away, sometimes assaulting shoppers and store employees in the process.

CBS News, 27 Nov. 2021 See More

单词	ransackers
释义	ransack verb ran·sack ˈran-ˌsak (ˌ)ran-ˈsak ransacked; ransacking; ransacks transitive verb 1 : to look through thoroughly in often a rough way … he and 15 staff members watched agents ransack the office. Christian Caryl et al. In desperation, I ransacked my refrigerator for something else to whip up. Dana Bowen (figurative) Most novelists ransack their lives for that first novel; it might be called involuntary reporting. Tom Wolfe 2 : to search through and steal from in a forceful and damaging way : plunder Thieves ransacked the house. Louis XVI was persuaded to risk a navy far from its own shores and to ransack the French arsenals for arms and ammunition … C. P. Reynolds ransacker noun Did you know? Ransack carries the image of a house being roughly disarranged, as might happen when you are frantically searching for something. This is appropriate given the word's origin. Ransack derives, via Middle English ransaken, from Old Norse rannsaka; the rann in rannsaka means "house." The second half of rannsaka is related to an Old English word, sēcan, meaning "to seek." But our modern use of the word isn't restricted to houses. You can ransack a drawer, a suitcase, or even the contents of a book (for information). A now-obsolete frequentative form of ransack, ransackle, gave us our adjective ramshackle. Synonyms despoil loot maraud pillage plunder sack See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Robbers ransacked the apartment looking for money. The room had been ransacked. Recent Examples on the Web In one version, Joe Biden’s banana-republic thugs invade the home of a blameless former president and ransack his wife’s dress closet. Lance Morrow, WSJ, 14 Aug. 2022 Gajhabuka is identified as one of three accomplices who proceeded to ransack the dispensary’s shelves, according to court records, before fleeing in a getaway car. oregonlive, 4 Aug. 2022 Witnesses cited Trump's tweet Dec. 19, 2020, amid disputes among his legal advisers as an invitation to ransack the Capitol weeks later. Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 12 July 2022 Yet Eastman continued the pressure even during the riot, while Pence and lawmakers huddled in safe rooms as hundreds of people battled with police and broke windows to enter and ransack the building. Sarah D. Wire, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2022 Thieves steal from about 90 cargo containers a day; sometimes an organized group halts trains and recruits people living on the street to ransack the containers. Amy Hubbard, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2022 Guerrero estimates that about 90 cargo containers a day are compromised, sometimes by an organized group that has halted trains and recruited people living on the street to ransack the containers. Rachel Uranga, oregonlive, 17 Jan. 2022 The committee was established to investigate the circumstances that caused a pro-Trump mob to ransack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, briefly stopping lawmakers from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election. Matthew Brown, USA TODAY, 11 Jan. 2022 In such cases, several robbers swarm a store, ransack the shelves and run away, sometimes assaulting shoppers and store employees in the process. CBS News, 27 Nov. 2021 See More Word History Etymology Middle English ransaken, from Old Norse rannsaka, from rann house + -saka (akin to Old English sēcan to seek) — more at seek First Known Use 13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Kids Definition ransack verb ran·sack ˈran-ˌsak ransacked; ransacking : to search through in a way that causes disorder or damage … I could tell the house was a disaster; it looked like it'd been ransacked by thieves. Ransom Riggs, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children ransackers noun plural of ransacker as in spoliators Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance spoliators desecraters plunderers depredators marauders looters sackers pillagers graffitists saboteurs wreckers demolishers spoilers desecrators wasters ruiners ravagers despoilers destroyers defacers taggers vandals Antonyms & Near Antonyms protectors savers preservers conservators conservers preservationists
随便看	mumbled mumblenews mumbler mumblers mumbles mumblety-peg mumbletypegs mumbling mumblingly mumblings mumbly mumbo jumbo mumbudget mumchance mumchances mume mumest Mumford mummed mummer mummeries mummers mummery mummest mummia

ransack

verb

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Kids Definition

verb

noun