1
as in to plunder
to search through with the intent of committing robbery
it was clear that the thieves who had ransacked the museum were professionals—they bypassed most of the exhibits and went straight for the vaults
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to search
to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something
I've ransacked the whole house for that book you lent me and it's nowhere to be found
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ransack
Also, the closure of the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince and the ransacking and burning down of one of the last critical-care hospitals, Bernard Mevs, has forced the mission to go down to a skeleton staff.
—
Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Jan. 2025
A week after inauguration day, his supporters ransacked government buildings in the capital Brasilia.
—Carrie Kahn, NPR, 26 Mar. 2025
After the vicious attack, Baker and Austin ransacked the couple’s bedroom and removed the DVR from the garage where the home security footage was stored.
—Christine Pelisek, People.com, 17 Mar. 2025
This should be done federally but will not happen when America’s richest tech baron, Elon Musk, is already ransacking sensitive federal agency data with no legal warrant.
—Kevin Sullivan, Hartford Courant, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ransack
Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Jan. 2025
A week after inauguration day, his supporters ransacked government buildings in the capital Brasilia.
—Carrie Kahn, NPR, 26 Mar. 2025
After the vicious attack, Baker and Austin ransacked the couple’s bedroom and removed the DVR from the garage where the home security footage was stored.
—Christine Pelisek, People.com, 17 Mar. 2025
This should be done federally but will not happen when America’s richest tech baron, Elon Musk, is already ransacking sensitive federal agency data with no legal warrant.
—Kevin Sullivan, Hartford Courant, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ransack
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ransack
Verb
-
There is something perverse about a civilization that plunders its archives to build statues.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
15 Apr. 2025
-
For decades, the terrorist group has plundered Gaza and sacrificed its people in pursuit of an unending messianic war to eliminate the Jewish state.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
18 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
The Chargers were searching for a sure-handed, downfield threat.—
Thuc Nhi Nguyen,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2025
-
Investigators are searching for the suspect, described as a man in his 20s or 30s wearing all black and black headphones.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Uh uh, method dressing is forever, at least for Timothée Chalamet—until the next role-of-a-lifetime comes along, or the parcels of Bob Dylan ephemera pillaged from the online auction houses stop coming through the young actor’s door that is.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
16 Mar. 2025
-
For centuries, the East India Company, a commercial and military organization, pillaged the riches of India to fund the British Empire and the company’s own expansion.—
Michael Knights,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Sporting found some moments of control in the second half and finally got a foothold in the game again.—
Daniel Sperry,
Kansas City Star,
20 Apr. 2025
-
Those few minutes sent students scrambling for cover and barricading themselves around campus until authorities found them.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
The city was sacked again — this time by the Turks — and incorporated into the Ottoman Empire.—
Danuta Hamlin,
FOXNews.com,
13 Apr. 2025
-
At the crossroads of Roman roads in ancient Gaul, Cassel was sacked by the Vikings in the late 9th century, and later became a 17th-century war prize fought over by France and Spain.—
Mary Winston Nicklin,
AFAR Media,
7 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
In November 2024, the Associated Press reported that prices in Gaza skyrocketed after nearly 100 trucks of food and humanitarian aid were looted by armed men.—
Rachel Wolf,
FOXNews.com,
26 Apr. 2025
-
Archaeologists noted that many of the tombs had been looted centuries or possibly thousands of years earlier, but a few items survived.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
22 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Anderson prefers to characterize Loewe as a cultural brand rather than a luxury one, finding the latter term despoiled.—
Rebecca Mead,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
-
Growth in Africa must be clean, both in terms of generating energy and not despoiling the continent’s landscape and natural resources.—
Jack A. Goldstone,
Foreign Affairs,
18 May 2023
Verb
-
Though Tut ruled for only a short time, this tomb was well concealed and, unlike most others, wasn’t raided.—
Bailey Berg,
AFAR Media,
25 Apr. 2025
-
His home was raided on August 5, 2024, where FBI agents found no evidence of the drug itself but did seize electronic items and demanded Reister take a urine test.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ransack.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ransack. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share