contraband

noun

con·​tra·​band ˈkän-trə-ˌband 

1

: illegal or prohibited traffic in goods : smuggling

… persons the most bound in duty to prevent contraband …

—Edmund Burke

2

: goods or merchandise whose importation, exportation, or possession is forbidden

Border police searched the car for drugs and other contraband.

also : smuggled goods

3

plural contrabands : an enslaved person who during the American Civil War escaped to or was brought within the Union lines

contraband adjective

Did you know?

Contraband first appeared in English in the early 1500s as a borrowing of Italian contrabbando. This Italian word can be traced to the Medieval Latin word contrabannum, a combination of contra- ("against") and bannum ("decree"). Bannum is Germanic in origin and is related to Old High German bannan ("to command"). Bannan is also related to Middle English bannen ("to summon or to curse"), the source of the English verb ban, which now means "to prohibit" but which once also meant "to curse."

Examples of contraband in a Sentence

The border police searched the car for drugs and other contraband.

Recent Examples on the Web

Such facilities, built for the lowest-risk offenders with dormitory-style housing and little or no fencing, have been the site of frequent escapes and an influx of contraband. —Michael R. Sisak and Michael Balsamo, Los Angeles Times, 5 Dec. 2024

Sometimes, what happens at the border — contraband, counterfeit items, illicit drugs, agricultural pestilence and non-native plant species — stays at the border. —Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press, 21 Nov. 2024

The jail said the raid was enacted to confiscate contraband, including drugs, guns and cellphones, but Combs' defense claims he was targeted in the search and that investigators turned over his notes to the government. —Matt Robison, Newsweek, 20 Nov. 2024

Her first infraction occurred in 1997 when she was caught with contraband, a razor. —Juliette Arcodia, NBC News, 20 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Italian; Middle French contrebande, borrowed from Italian contrabando (later contrabbando), originally Upper Italian (Venetian) chontrabando (Medieval Latin of Venice contrabannum), from contra- contra- + bando "proclamation, edict, law," borrowed from Gothic bandwo "sign, signal" — more at band entry 3

First Known Use

circa 1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

contraband

noun

con·​tra·​band ˈkän-trə-ˌband 

1

: goods forbidden by law to be owned or to be brought into or out of a country

2

: smuggled goods

contraband adjective

Etymology

from Italian contrabbando "smuggling," from Latin contrabannum, literally, "against the decree or command," from contra "against" and bannum, bannus "decree"; of Germanic origin

Legal Definition

contraband

noun

con·​tra·​band ˈkän-trə-ˌband 

: property that is unlawfully produced, possessed, or transported

— contraband per se

: property that is in and of itself unlawful to possess, produce, or transport

— derivative contraband

: property that is unlawful because it is used in committing an unlawful act

Etymology

Italian contrabbando act of smuggling, from contra- against + bando edict, law