commandeer

[ kom-uhn-deer ]
See synonyms for commandeer on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to order or force into active military service.

  2. to seize (private property) for military or other public use: The police officer commandeered a taxi and took off after the getaway car.

  1. to seize arbitrarily.

Origin of commandeer

1
1880–85; <Afrikaans kommandeer<French commander to command

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use commandeer in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for commandeer

commandeer

/ (ˌkɒmənˈdɪə) /


verb(tr)
  1. to seize for public or military use

  2. to seize arbitrarily

Origin of commandeer

1
C19: from Afrikaans kommandeer, from French commander to command

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