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kidnap

USKID-nap/ˈkɪdnæp/

Verbkidnaps, kidnapping, kidnapped

Noun pluralkidnaps

2 meanings of kidnap

Practice

  1. 1
    verbtransitive
    To seize or hold a person unlawfully and carry them off or hide them, sometimes to demand a ransom.

    The rebels kidnapped the diplomat and held him for three weeks.

    Armed gangs sometimes kidnap travelers along the remote desert highway.

    Similarabduct, seize, snatch, capture

  2. 2
    nouncountable or uncountable
    The unlawful act or crime of seizing a person and carrying them off or holding them captive.

    The kidnap of the executive triggered a nationwide manhunt.

    She was charged with kidnap after the missing child was found in her car.

    Similarabduction

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Origin

Formed from kid combined with nap, meaning “to nab or grab.”