appropriates

verb

present tense third-person singular of appropriate
1
as in seizes
to take or make use of under a guise of authority but without actual right archaeologists wrongfully appropriated artifacts excavated at ancient sites for their museums

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in steals
to take (something) without right and with an intent to keep you can't just appropriate somebody's term paper and put your name on it!

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 appropriates Tiki bars aren’t without criticism, having occasionally been attacked as escapist fantasy that appropriates Hawaiian or Polynesian iconography. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026 Summary The Caribbean is increasingly a global wellness hub, though Western influence often appropriates Afro-Indigenous practices. — Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2026 By contrast, Congress appropriates much of the public-private institution’s funding and exercises oversight over the institution, which is governed by a board of regents. — Kelsey Ables, The Atlantic, 23 July 2026 The state appropriates within its budget to ensure bond holders know the state has the money, but the state hasn’t had to use that money because the admissions tax and tax district have funded the bond, Huston said. — Robert McCoppin, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2026 The lawsuit argues the freeze violated federal law, including the Administrative Procedure Act and constitutional limits on executive power and how Congress appropriates funds. — Sacbee.com, 9 Jan. 2026 The state appropriates funds for the voucher program at the beginning of the fiscal year and then seeks federal reimbursement. — Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald, 7 Jan. 2026 But November's benefits have been disrupted due to a lack of funding deal from Congress, which appropriates the federal funds for the program. — Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2025 Typically, Congress passes a budget that appropriates money for the next fiscal year to federal agencies. — Amy Maxmen, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appropriates
  1. seizes
  2. steals
  3. confiscates
  4. usurps
  5. occupies
  6. grabs
  7. commandeers
  8. preempts
Verb
  • That reporting revealed that the state frequently seizes money from legal settlements stemming from medical malpractice, police brutality, workplace injury and other wrongful death lawsuits.
    — Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Wilson, meanwhile, seizes on the opening to play teacher’s pet.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 13 Sep. 2026
Definition of seizes
Verb
  • If malware steals an active login session, an attacker may be able to access an account without typing your password again.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • And Michael Rishawn almost steals the show with his delicious comic turn as the restaurant host, as well as other ancillary characters.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of steals
Verb
  • Unlike most other states, California has its own inspection-and-approval system for fireworks, and confiscates those failing standards.
    — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 30 June 2026
  • The children designated as Palestinians, meanwhile, have their drawings torn up and are relegated to small corners of the classroom while the teacher confiscates their candy.
    — Robert Schmad, The Washington Examiner, 26 Nov. 2025
Definition of confiscates
Verb
  • California courts have repeatedly refused to rewrite unconstitutional tax statutes on the grounds that this usurps the role of the Legislature or, in the case of an initiative, the people.
    — Jared Walczak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 July 2026
  • After witnessing Sinner miss 16 break points against the same opponent on Friday, Alcaraz would have been forgiven for worrying that something similar might happen to him — especially against arguably tennis’s greatest escape artist, at least until the Spaniard usurps him.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of usurps
Verb
  • The Sun occupies only a small area of the sky, meaning incoming sunlight reaches a solar cell within a narrow angular cone.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Those words capture a central tension in the sprawling show, which occupies interconnected galleries at the far end of the museum’s Resnick Pavilion.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of occupies
Verb
  • Over the course of Next Gen NYC’s season, which ended this past week, the model Ava Dash grabs a slice of pizza on Fulton Street; strolls through the Seaport; and calls her father, the hip-hop mogul Damon Dash, from a bench at Pier 17.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Ryan opens it, grabs a Diet Coke and asks one of his assistants to summon a cup of ice.
    — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of grabs
Verb
  • Out-of-control AI escapes human oversight, commandeers vital infrastructure and kills millions of people or even all of humanity.
    — Max Zahn, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • After he’s randomly slapped by multiple women, Barney commandeers Ted and Marshall’s March Madness bracket to figure out which of his past conquests is sabotaging his love life.
    — Erin Strecker, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of commandeers
Verb
  • Two federal courts of appeals have now issued conflicting decisions on whether federal law preempts states from enforcing their sports betting laws against Kalshi and other prediction-market operators.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 31 Aug. 2026
  • No federal statute currently preempts state disclosure requirements, and firms advising advertisers have generally recommended continued compliance with state law while the question is litigated.
    — Gabriel Alin Zainescu, Forbes.com, 25 July 2026
Definition of preempts

Browse Nearby Words

appropriateness
appropriates
appropriating
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Cite this Entry

“Appropriates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appropriates. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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