conscript

1 of 3

noun

con·​script ˈkän-ˌskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
: a conscripted person (such as a military recruit)

conscript

2 of 3

adjective

con·​script ˈkän-ˌskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
1
: enrolled into service by compulsion : drafted
2
: made up of conscripted persons

conscript

3 of 3

verb

con·​script kən-ˈskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
conscripted; conscripting; conscripts

transitive verb

: to enroll into service by compulsion : draft
was conscripted into the army

Examples of conscript in a Sentence

Noun as the war continued, the body of enlisted soldiers was supplemented by an increasing number of conscripts Verb The government is conscripting men for the army. He was conscripted into the army.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The studies concluded that conscripts were responsible for infecting the armed forces with the social ills roiling 1960s America, such as drug abuse and racial tensions. Juan Quiroz, Foreign Affairs, 5 Jan. 2024 Zelensky has also said publicly that Ukraine lacks the funds to pay so many new conscripts. John Hudson, Washington Post, 31 Jan. 2024 His father, Rahal, had been a conscript in the French army when Algeria was a French colony, and had fought in France’s colonial wars. Adam Nossiter, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024 When the United States entered the Vietnam War, U.S. President Lyndon Johnson, seeking to avoid political backlash, refused to activate reserve and National Guard units, relying instead on conscripts. Juan Quiroz, Foreign Affairs, 5 Jan. 2024 The conscripts marched 10 to 40 kilometers (about 6.2 to 24.8 miles) in full gear three times during their weekslong training. Kim Tong-Hyung, Fortune, 11 Dec. 2023 Lee Seok-Hoon, at 29, was several years older than most of the other conscripts, after delaying his service for years to accommodate his career. Kim Tong-Hyung, Fortune, 11 Dec. 2023 Conscripted out of high school Young conscripts fresh out of high school are pushed to sign permanent contracts, according to Grigory Sverdlin, one of the founders of Go by the Forest who fled Russia last year. Natalia Abbakumova, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2023 As a young conscript four decades ago, Kang was a machine gunner stationed near the border with North Korea. Max Kim, Los Angeles Times, 27 Nov. 2023
Adjective
The Bolshevik leader Leon Trotsky’s talent as a military organizer gradually turned the ragtag collection of volunteer Red militias into a regular conscript army, and by the fall of 1920, the Whites were thoroughly defeated and dislodged from most Russian territory. Anna Reid, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 Jin, who turned 30 earlier this month, entered the boot camp at Yeoncheon, a town near the tense border with North Korea, for five weeks of basic military training together with other new conscript soldiers, the Defense Ministry said. Time, 13 Dec. 2022 Women mourn the death of their family member and conscript soldier Gasanbek Agabekov, who was killed in Ukraine the 27th of May, in Aglobi, Dagestan, Russia, on June 16. Time, 23 Nov. 2022 Still, Russia’s proxy leaders there have had to forcibly conscript soldiers as casualties have risen. Marc Santora, BostonGlobe.com, 25 Sep. 2022 The Cold War-era law lets the federal government conscript private businesses to produce goods for national defense and to reorder supply chains, putting some customers ahead of others. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 19 May 2022 Morale is perhaps the largest issue, with conscript troops abandoning vehicles and vanishing into forests. Benjamin H. Friedman, The Week, 20 Mar. 2022 The gang is known to forcibly conscript migrants as mules—and sometimes dispose of them. Jason Motlagh, Outside Online, 19 July 2016
Verb
Druze men over 18 have been conscripted to the IDF since 1957 and often rise to positions of high rank, while many build careers in the police and security forces. Lianne Kolirin, CNN, 21 Feb. 2024 The brother was conscripted into the army but managed to get out. David Woods, The Indianapolis Star, 26 Jan. 2024 All four of his older brothers were conscripted into Japan’s military during World War II, and his eldest brother was killed in Burma (now Myanmar). Motoko Rich, New York Times, 29 Nov. 2023 Outlaw Posse is Van Peebles’ second western, arriving 31 years after 1993’s Posse, a film set primarily in 1898, about a group of Buffalo Soldiers conscripted to fight in the Spanish-American War. Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Mar. 2024 Women comprise nearly half of HALO's staff, Cowan said, in part because men between the ages of 18 and 60 are obligated to conscript in the military. Julie Tsirkin, NBC News, 20 Feb. 2024 The country was under French colonial rule, and his father was conscripted into the French military. Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 15 Feb. 2024 How was watermelon conscripted in service of a racist agenda, and how can it be reclaimed? Seyward Darby, Longreads, 24 Jan. 2024 The integration of women into the military’s combat units has been the subject of a lengthy debate in Israel, home to one of the world’s few armies that conscript women at 18 for mandatory service. Isabel Kershner Avishag Shaar-Yashuv, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'conscript.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

alteration of French conscrit, from Latin conscriptus, past participle of conscribere to enroll, enlist, from com- + scribere to write — more at scribe

First Known Use

Noun

1799, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1812, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1813, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of conscript was in 1799

Dictionary Entries Near conscript

Cite this Entry

“Conscript.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conscript. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

conscript

1 of 3 adjective
con·​script ˈkän-ˌskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
1
: enrolled into service by force
2
: made up of conscripted persons

conscript

2 of 3 verb
con·​script kən-ˈskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
: to enroll into service by force : draft
was conscripted into the army
conscription
kən-ˈskrip-shən
noun

conscript

3 of 3 noun
con·​script ˈkän-ˌskript How to pronounce conscript (audio)
: a conscripted person (as a military recruit)

More from Merriam-Webster on conscript

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