CONTRABAND


Meaning of CONTRABAND in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ ˈkän-trə-ˌband ]

noun

Etymology: Italian contrabbando, from Medieval Latin contrabannum, from contra- + bannus, bannum decree, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German bannan to command — more at ban

Date: circa 1529

1. : illegal or prohibited traffic in goods : smuggling

2. : goods or merchandise whose importation, exportation, or possession is forbidden ; also : smuggled goods

3. : a slave who during the American Civil War escaped to or was brought within the Union lines

• contraband adjective

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.