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Disseise, "seisin" ("the possession of land or chattels"), and "seize" are all 13th-century words derived from the Anglo-French word seisir, meaning "to put in possession of." That’s the original meaning of English "seize" as well. ("Seize" can also be spelled "seise" in that sense.) The Magna Carta (the great charter of liberties, originally written in Medieval Latin and signed in 1215) is perhaps the most frequently quoted use of the word disseise: "No free man shall be … disseised … except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land."
First Known Use: 14th century
in the meaning defined above
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