1
as in subsidy
a sum of money allotted for a specific use by official or formal action
the National Park Service received an increased appropriation for wildlife management
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in takeover
the unlawful taking or withholding of something from the rightful owner under a guise of authority
the insurgents' appropriation of the house for their headquarters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of appropriation
As a result, Democrats refused to fund DHS as part of regular appropriations, pushing for new restrictions on how immigration enforcement officials conduct themselves.
—
Ryan Lucas, NPR, 26 Apr. 2026
Its next stop will be the lower chamber’s appropriations committee.
—Linh Tat, Daily News, 24 Apr. 2026
But Congress, not the White House, ultimately sets NASA’s funding levels through the appropriations process.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 24 Apr. 2026
The Pictures Generation, Richard Prince, appropriation art—all Duchamp.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for appropriation
Ryan Lucas, NPR, 26 Apr. 2026
Its next stop will be the lower chamber’s appropriations committee.
—Linh Tat, Daily News, 24 Apr. 2026
But Congress, not the White House, ultimately sets NASA’s funding levels through the appropriations process.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 24 Apr. 2026
The Pictures Generation, Richard Prince, appropriation art—all Duchamp.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for appropriation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appropriation
Noun
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Last December, Temu owner PDD Holdings—a multinational commerce group domiciled in the Cayman Islands and registered in Ireland that’s better known as Pinduoduo—had two of its global facilities raided by European Union regulators over worries over possible Chinese state subsidies.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
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Demand for EVs in China is slowing after the government trimmed consumer subsidies and perks, and there’s no end in sight to a brutal price war as a crowded field of EV rivals jostle to outperform and undercut one another.—
Simone McCarthy,
CNN Money,
1 May 2026
Noun
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Trump has been warning of a takeover of Cuba, feeding anxiety among Democratic lawmakers who are fearful that negotiations with Havana are a pretense for an invasion.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
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That’s different from a street takeover, and gives legitimate racers a bad name.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The developers would also pledge $2 million to the city’s Housing Trust Fund, which provides grant funding to affordable housing projects — in line with Port KC policy requiring projects that don’t set aside affordable units to pay $5,000 per unit into the Housing Trust Fund.—
Chris Higgins,
Kansas City Star,
29 Apr. 2026
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The unrestricted grant resurrects the spirt of the AIDS Treatment Project, which Giorno started when the epidemic left so many artists in need beginning in the early ’80s.—
Andy Battaglia,
ARTnews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The double blockade actually creates a pretty tenuous situation because every interdiction, every warning shot, every seizure of vessels, could become a trigger for a wider relapse into conflict.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
27 Apr. 2026
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That certification does not mention mines specifically and is intended to protect against the entire spectrum of threats, including missile and drone attacks or seizures, Mortimer said.—
Ben Finley,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The Treat a Stranger Grant will be an annual program for which an allotment of money will be distributed however the selection jury sees fit—to a group of artists, one artist, or through other arrangements.—
Andy Battaglia,
ARTnews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
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Amid that frenzy, Gala Games sold the initial allotment of 4,661 NFT plots of Legacy land within days of first putting them up for public sale.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Crystal Grove plans also received backlash from residents when petitioners in March appeared before city officials and received approval for the annexation of 112-acre parcels known as 13209, 13232 and 13420 Delaware Street.—
Deborah Laverty,
Chicago Tribune,
2 May 2026
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In Parker County, Tanya Babbar reports that three challengers backed by Mayor Teresa Palmer are trying to flip the Willow Park City Council amid a lawsuit from Fort Worth and Aledo over allegations of unlawful annexation tied to a $500 million development.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram staff,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
2 May 2026
Noun
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This is an ancient practice that continues into the Middle Ages called usurpation.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026
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The Court’s usurpation runs deeper than the invalidation of statutes with a liberal cast, though there has been plenty of that.—
Duncan Hosie,
The Atlantic,
13 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Appropriation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appropriation. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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