ransack

verb

ˈran-ˌsak How to pronounce ransack (audio)
Definition of ransacknext
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

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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 After the Battle of the Alamo, the Mexican army ransacked the site and salvaged all the leftover artillery for future military use, ridding the battleground of most of its weaponry. — Amen Galinato, CNN Money, 25 June 2026 Historical novelists are often charged with disrespect and unseriousness, of ransacking the archives for sensational scenery to hang behind their conventional family sagas and love stories. — Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 1 June 2026 Rubio said Cuba’s current crisis should be blamed on the military officials behind GAESA, which has ransacked the country’s revenue for their benefit, leaving most Cubans impoverished. — Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 20 May 2026 On April 18, Fort Lauderdale officers were called to an Airbnb in the 1600 block of Northwest 16th Court after a group of women who had rented the home returned to find it in disarray, furniture flipped over, their belongings ransacked a man inside. — Angie Dimichele, Sun Sentinel, 30 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for ransack
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ransack
  1. plunder
  2. search
  3. pillage
  4. find
  5. sack
  6. loot
  7. despoil
  8. raid
Verb
  • Meanwhile, Lohar’s surviving mercenaries are plundering villages.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 6 July 2026
  • Or was the hole man-made with a malevolent intent, perhaps plundering a grave for artifacts?
    — Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Definition of plunder
Verb
  • Prosecutors argued during the hearing that the murders were premeditated, as a cup that was in front of Benning in a photo was missing when police searched the scene.
    — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 2 July 2026
  • Kamran said rescuers were searching through the rubble after receiving reports that more children could be trapped beneath the debris.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 1 July 2026
Definition of search
Verb
  • Unfortunately, a group of eastern kings pillage Sodom and Gomorrah and take Lot captive along with others.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
  • Triarchy forces that escaped the Battle of the Gullet have been pillaging the mainland, and some come across Aegon’s captors, cutting short a bit of squabbling between the two.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
Definition of pillage
Verb
  • Gas stations across Russia are imposing limits on purchases, CNN’s analysis found, with fuel- tracking websites popping up to guide drivers to the best spots to fill up.
    — Clare Sebastian, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
  • The incident happened less than a week after another child was found dead inside a car at a Plantation early learning center last Monday.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 6 July 2026
Definition of find
Verb
  • The Hightowers, Rhaenyra soon learns, have sacked the town of Tumbleton, a thriving city on the border of the Crownlands and the Reach.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 6 July 2026
  • That came in the spring of 2025, about 11 months after his dad had been sacked as coach, when Pochettino, the new manager, gave the younger Berhalter his first national team call-up.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
Definition of sack
Verb
  • For his part, Klaus Kallmann also claims that his father, Hartmut Kallmann, always said that their family’s art collection was fully intact when the Nazis came to power and that the collection subsequently looted.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 30 June 2026
  • Though it had been looted by kids, most of the material was eventually recovered.
    — Andres Viglucci, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026
Definition of loot
Verb
  • One looks to the story of the Haitian World Cup team, appearing in the tournament for the first time in fifty years, which has gathered expatriate players from the Haitian diaspora to play for that beautiful and utterly despoiled country, where many of them have never lived.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 21 June 2026
  • In the 21st century, oil extraction has become a serious threat to Ecuadoran Amazonia, with large swaths of forest, often located in Indigenous territories, despoiled by the release of wastewater from the wells.
    — Stanley Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026
Definition of despoil
Verb
  • Alaska also demonstrates that the fear that dividends automatically create dependency or invite politicians to raid the principal is overblown.
    — James Broughel, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026
  • Added to this, Whitehall has historically faced criticism for treating the armed forces as a budget piggy bank to be raided whenever public funds run short.
    — David Szondy July 01, New Atlas, 1 July 2026
Definition of raid

Browse Nearby Words

ran riot
ransack
ransacked
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Cite this Entry

“Ransack.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ransack. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of ransack for Spanish Speakers

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