impound

[ verb im-pound; noun im-pound ]
See synonyms for: impoundimpounded on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to shut up in a pound or other enclosure, as a stray animal.

  2. to confine within an enclosure or within limits: water impounded in a reservoir.

  1. to seize and retain in custody of the law, as a document for evidence.

noun
  1. money, property, etc., that has been impounded: a sale of impounds by the police department.

Origin of impound

1
First recorded in 1545–55; im-3 + pound3

Other words from impound

  • im·pound·a·ble, adjective
  • im·pound·er, noun
  • un·im·pound·ed, adjective

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

How to use impound in a sentence

  • It was only by strenuous measures that the dam impounding the waters of Tuxedo Lake was saved.

    The Passaic Flood of 1903 | Marshall Ora Leighton

British Dictionary definitions for impound

impound

/ (ɪmˈpaʊnd) /


verb(tr)
  1. to confine (stray animals, illegally parked cars, etc) in a pound

    • to seize (chattels, etc) by legal right

    • to take possession of (a document, evidence, etc) and hold in legal custody

  1. to collect (water) in a reservoir or dam, as for irrigation

  2. to seize or appropriate

Derived forms of impound

  • impoundable, adjective
  • impoundage or impoundment, noun
  • impounder, noun

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