dispossess

verb

dis·​pos·​sess ˌdis-pə-ˈzes How to pronounce dispossess (audio)
 also  -ˈses
dispossessed; dispossessing; dispossesses

transitive verb

: to put out of possession or occupancy
dispossessed the nobles of their land
dispossession
ˌdis-pə-ˈze-shən How to pronounce dispossess (audio)
 also  -ˈse-
noun
dispossessor
ˌdis-pə-ˈze-sər How to pronounce dispossess (audio)
 also  -ˈse-
noun

Examples of dispossess in a Sentence

The land was settled by dispossessing the native people who lived here. opponents of gentrification claim that the process unfairly dispossesses poorer residents of their long-established homes
Recent Examples on the Web The Palestinian national struggle has become the cause of the justice-seeking dispossessed throughout the world. Roger Cohen, New York Times, 10 Dec. 2023 Under the volcano: How Guatemala's Indigenous communities have been displaced and dispossessed Indigenous people make up nearly half the population of this Tennessee-sized nation. Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post, 1 Dec. 2023 But the rural Americans with the deepest roots, the Native ones, were very often violently dispossessed. Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2023 To dispossess people of their land, seize it for themselves, administer the transfer of treasure and labor across borders, brutally suppress movements for self-government, and feed media with one-sided narratives—all of those and more were the hallmarks of an empire coming into view. Beth Py-Lieberman, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023 In the 1930s, when the process of dispossessing Native lands had largely been completed, the federal government began shutting down many of the schools. Zach Levitt, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2023 The Eastern Band’s connection to this place is deep — unusually so, in a country where so many Native communities have been dispossessed. Jacey Fortin Mike Belleme, New York Times, 21 Oct. 2023 The site is sacred to Australia’s Aboriginal people, who have lived on the continent for at least fifty thousand years, but have been dispossessed and discriminated against since European colonization began, in the eighteenth century. Naaman Zhou, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2023 The experience of being completely dispossessed of your home is humiliating. Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dispossess.' 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

Middle French despossesser, from des- dis- + possesser to possess

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dispossess was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near dispossess

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

dispossess

verb
dis·​pos·​sess ˌdis-pə-ˈzes How to pronounce dispossess (audio)
: to take away the possession of or the right to occupy land or houses
dispossession noun

Legal Definition

dispossess

transitive verb
dis·​pos·​sess ˌdis-pə-ˈzes How to pronounce dispossess (audio)
: to put out of possession or occupancy compare evict
dispossession noun
dispossessor noun

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