kidnapped also kidnaped
ˈkid-ˌnapt 
; kidnapping also kidnaping
; kidnapping also kidnaping
: to seize and detain or carry away by unlawful force or fraud and often with a demand for ransom
kidnapper
noun
or less commonly kidnaper
Examples of kidnap in a Sentence
the child of the wealthy industrialist was kidnapped and held for ransom
Recent Examples on the Web
The film’s synopsis describes a harrowing premise: During the 1978 World Cup soccer final, amid Argentina’s military dictatorship, a group of torturers violently breaks into a home and kidnaps young people to take them to a clandestine detention center.
—
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 18 May 2025
In the end, the majority of the 16 U.S. missionaries and one Canadian national who were kidnapped in October 2021 and held for ransom for two months by Haiti’s notorious 400 Mawozo gang were freed only after a $350,000 ransom was paid.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 16 May 2025
Uruguay's security forces gained the upper hand over the Tupamaros by the time the military swept to power in a 1973 coup, marking the start of a 12-year dictatorship in which about 200 people were kidnapped and killed.
—Reuters, FOXNews.com, 14 May 2025
In January, David Balland, a co-founder of French crypto firm Ledger, had his hand mutilated after he and his wife were kidnapped from their home in central France.
—Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for kidnap
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Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 18 May 2025
In the end, the majority of the 16 U.S. missionaries and one Canadian national who were kidnapped in October 2021 and held for ransom for two months by Haiti’s notorious 400 Mawozo gang were freed only after a $350,000 ransom was paid.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 16 May 2025
Uruguay's security forces gained the upper hand over the Tupamaros by the time the military swept to power in a 1973 coup, marking the start of a 12-year dictatorship in which about 200 people were kidnapped and killed.
—Reuters, FOXNews.com, 14 May 2025
In January, David Balland, a co-founder of French crypto firm Ledger, had his hand mutilated after he and his wife were kidnapped from their home in central France.
—Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for kidnap
Cite this Entry
“Kidnap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kidnap. Accessed 24 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Legal Definition
Etymology
probably back-formation from kidnapper, from kid child + obsolete napper thief
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