ransacked

verb

past tense of ransack
1
as in plundered
to search through with the intent of committing robbery it was clear that the thieves who had ransacked the museum were professionals—they bypassed most of the exhibits and went straight for the vaults

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in searched
to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something I've ransacked the whole house for that book you lent me and it's nowhere to be found

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ransacked Two months later, local media reported that at least a dozen people ransacked another of the company’s trains. — Kiel Porter, Fortune, 17 Aug. 2026 An extended statewide drought, hot and windy weather, and forests ransacked by pine beetles persist, making conditions ripe for fires. — Noelle Phillips, Denver Post, 16 Aug. 2026 An AutoZone in East Los Angeles was ransacked twice over the weekend. — Chelsea Hylton, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026 People close to Machado were tortured and questioned about her whereabouts, and state agents ransacked El Bejucal, searching for clues. — Stephania Taladrid, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 Royal forces ransacked every ship that arrived at Alexandria, searching for scrolls. — Rose Horowitch, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026 Some people climbed a lifeguard tower, while others ran through traffic and ransacked stalls where artisans sold their goods, police said at the time. — Nathaniel Percy, Oc Register, 7 July 2026 After the Battle of the Alamo, the Mexican army ransacked the site and salvaged all the leftover artillery for future military use, ridding the battleground of most of its weaponry. — Amen Galinato, CNN Money, 25 June 2026 Officer Sean Lally told the court on Monday that the woman's room appeared ransacked and alleged that Jankauskas had broken a mirror and a bed. — Adam England, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ransacked
  1. plundered
  2. searched
  3. looted
  4. found
  5. pillaged
  6. raided
  7. sacked
  8. despoiled
Verb
  • There is depth and detail that can be navigated and known, probed and plundered for rewards — and the best way to do all of that is with a manual telescope.
    — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • As long as the contents of a container have not been plundered outright, they can even be delivered to the recipient after an accident, albeit with some delay.
    — Alexander Klose, Scientific American, 24 July 2026
Definition of plundered
Verb
  • The Mexican navy searched a vast area of the Pacific Ocean by sea and air, eventually finding the two men floating in a large fishing cooler about 150 miles off the coast of Chiapas, a southern state in Mexico that borders Guatemala.
    — Diego Mendoza, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Cohen's testimony at the time appeared to be the final breach in a once-close relationship between the lawyer and his client that was tested in dramatic fashion in 2018 when FBI agents searched Cohen's office, home and hotel room.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of searched
Verb
  • The drum topped a list of 148 objects that Côte d’Ivoire requested from France in 2019; the petition followed French President Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 pledge to return works of art looted in Africa during the colonial era.
    — Anne Doran, ARTnews.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Los Angeles County deputies say that an AutoZone in East Los Angeles was found looted early Saturday morning, near the spot where a street takeover had taken place.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of looted
Verb
  • As for other homegrown brands, Moonglaze, founded by makeup artist Yara Alnamlah, launched at Sephora Middle East earlier this year, the first Saudi brand to launch at the retailer.
    — Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The Gwangju Biennale was founded in 1994 to commemorate the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, during which hundreds of civilians were killed during a protest against the authoritarian military government’s brutal crackdown on civil rights.
    — Vivienne Chow, ARTnews.com, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of found
Verb
  • But Nolan also throws a meditative new wrinkle into the story, as Odysseus comes to grips with his role in the Trojan War, leading the charge as his men raped, murdered and pillaged in his name.
    — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 18 July 2026
  • For decades, tomb raiders have pillaged sites across the country, selling them on the black market.
    — Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 19 June 2026
Definition of pillaged
Verb
  • One day, Khalil’s aunt was working at a nonprofit; the next, the office was raided and his aunt was sent to prison without explanation.
    — Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Later, law enforcement raided the mayor's home, and the Allegheny County Police Department took over the investigation because of a conflict of interest.
    — Jennifer Borrasso, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of raided
Verb
  • Mendoza was sacked once and took several other hits playing against Houston’s second-string defense.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Frank, sacked by Spurs last season, was part of the BBC’s World Cup coverage over the summer.
    — Tim Spiers, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of sacked
Verb
  • One looks to the story of the Haitian World Cup team, appearing in the tournament for the first time in fifty years, which has gathered expatriate players from the Haitian diaspora to play for that beautiful and utterly despoiled country, where many of them have never lived.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 21 June 2026
  • In the 21st century, oil extraction has become a serious threat to Ecuadoran Amazonia, with large swaths of forest, often located in Indigenous territories, despoiled by the release of wastewater from the wells.
    — Stanley Stewart, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026
Definition of despoiled

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Cite this Entry

“Ransacked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ransacked. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of ransacked for Spanish Speakers

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