seize

Etymology

Earlier seise, from Middle English seisen, sesen, saisen, from Old French seisir (“to take possession of; invest (person, court)”), from Medieval Latin sacīre (“to lay claim to, appropriate”) (8th century) in the phrase ad propriam sacire, from Old Low Frankish *sakjan (“to sue, bring legal action”), from Proto-Germanic *sakjaną, *sakōną (compare Old English sacian (“to strive, brawl”)), from Proto-Germanic *sakaną (compare Old Saxon sakan (“to accuse”), Old High German sahhan (“to bicker, quarrel, rebuke”), Old English sacan 'to quarrel, claim by law, accuse').^[1] Cognate of sake and Latin sagio (“to perceive acutely”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: sēz, IPA^(key): /siːz/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Homophones: seas, sees

Verb

seize (third-person singular simple present seizes, present participle seizing, simple past and past participle seized)

1. (transitive) To deliberately take hold of; to grab or capture.
2. (transitive) To take advantage of (an opportunity or circumstance).
3. (transitive) To take possession of (by force, law etc.).

   to seize smuggled goods

   to seize a ship after libeling

4. (transitive) To have a sudden and powerful effect upon.
   • 2010, Antonio Saggio, A Secret van Gogh: His Motif and Motives, →ISBN, 11:

     This sensation of an object becoming alive is a characteristic that, I believe, seizes all viewers of a van Gogh. The Bible goes beyond being a simple still-life object to become a living thing, an expression of strength, an existence that emanates from itself, beyond the painting surface to participate in our very lives.

   a panic seized the crowd

   a fever seized him

5. (transitive, nautical) To bind, lash or make fast, with several turns of small rope, cord, or small line.

   to seize two fish-hooks back to back

   to seize or stop one rope on to another

6. (transitive, obsolete) To fasten, fix.
7. (intransitive) To lay hold in seizure, by hands or claws (+ on or upon).

   to seize on the neck of a horse

   The text which had seized upon his heart with such comfort and strength abode upon him for more than a year. (Southey, Bunyan, p. 21)

8. (intransitive) To have a seizure.
   • 2012, Daniel M. Avery, Tales of a Country Obstetrician

     Nearing what she thought was a climax, he started seizing and fell off her. Later, realizing he was dead, she became alarmed and dragged the body to his vehicle to make it look like he had died in his truck.

9. (intransitive) To bind or lock in position immovably; see also seize up.

   Rust caused the engine to seize, never to run again.

10. (Britain, intransitive) To submit for consideration to a deliberative body.

References

• seize in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• “seize”, in OED Online , Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

Etymology

From Middle French seze, from Old French seize, seze, from Latin sēdecim.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɛz/

• audio (France)

  (file)

• (Quebec) IPA^(key): [saiz]

• audio (Quebec)

  (file)

Numeral

seize

1. sixteen

Further reading

• “seize” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Etymology

From Old French seize, from Latin sēdecim.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Jersey)

  (file)

Numeral

seize

1. (Jersey, Guernsey, cardinal) sixteen