smuggle

verb

smug·​gle ˈsmə-gəl 

smuggled; smuggling ˈsmə-g(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to import or export secretly contrary to the law and especially without paying duties imposed by law

2

: to convey or introduce surreptitiously

intransitive verb

: to import or export something in violation of the customs laws

Examples of smuggle in a Sentence

He was arrested for smuggling drugs into the country.

They smuggled immigrants across the border.

The paintings had been smuggled out of the country before the war.

We smuggled his favorite sandwich past the nurse.

Recent Examples on the Web

That dynamic is even more acute with Dell or the factory employees like Rodney and Kimberly, who were smuggling CDs and sometimes selling bootlegs to their friends in town. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2024

The 27 Amazon parrots being smuggled into the U.S. through the Mariposa Crossing were found in a passenger vehicle by port personnel, the agency said. —Jose R. Gonzalez, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2024

Officials in Thailand discovered hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cocaine, allegedly smuggled in from the U.S. in clothing racks, according to local media reports. —Emma Colton, Fox News, 16 Mar. 2024

Similarly, while making sure that Hamas is not able to preserve its military presence in Rafah, Israel also must ensure that the border with Egypt is no longer a sieve through which huge amounts of material can be smuggled into Gaza. —Dennis Ross, Foreign Affairs, 13 Mar. 2024

These pages have a midnight sort of impact many novelists would kill to smuggle into their fiction. —Dwight Garner, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024

In February, the U.S. Justice Department arrested 17 people in a scheme to smuggle fentanyl into the U.S. inside fire extinguishers. —Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024

Kevin Noe Campos Villa, 20, from Tijuana, Mexico, pleaded guilty in federal court to smuggling people across the border in return for $6,000. —Patrick Smith, NBC News, 22 Mar. 2024

Thomas Jones, a Confederate agent and Cox’s foster brother, agreed to smuggle the men to safety. —Vanessa Armstrong, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Low German smuggeln & Dutch smokkelen

First Known Use

1687, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

smuggle

verb

smug·​gle ˈsməg-əl 

smuggled; smuggling -(ə-)liŋ 

1

: to export or import secretly and unlawfully especially to avoid paying taxes

smuggle jewels

2

: to take, bring, or introduce secretly

smuggler

ˈsməg-lər 

noun

Legal Definition

smuggle

verb

smug·​gle ˈsmə-gəl 

smuggled; smuggling

transitive verb

: to import or export secretly and illegally especially to avoid paying duties or to evade enforcement of laws

smuggle drugs

convicted of smuggling weapons

intransitive verb

: to export or import something in violation of customs laws