press-gang

noun

A body of men employed to force others (impress them) into military service, especially naval service.

Similar
pressshanghai
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Meanings

nounpress-gang (plural press-gangs)

plural press-gangs · alternative pressgang · alternative press gang

  1. A body of men employed to force others (impress them) into military service, especially naval service.

    "If this is a press gang," Lyle remarked, "you should know that my diet is extremely poor, I'm too tall for trenches and I blow away in a light breeze."

    2021 March 14, HarryBlank, “Defence”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 25 Dec 2024

    Synonyms: press

verbpress-gang (third-person singular simple present press-gangs, present participle press-ganging, simple past and past participle press-ganged)

present singular third person press-gangs · participle present press-ganging · participle past press-ganged · past press-ganged · alternative pressgang · alternative press gang

  1. transitiveTo force (someone) into military or naval service.

    Synonyms: shanghai

  2. transitiveTo coerce (somebody) into doing something that they are reluctant to do.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA body of men employed to force others (impress them) into military service, especially naval service.

Similar
press

verbTo force (someone) into military or naval service.

Similar
shanghai
Also see
press

Origin

From press + gang.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian мобилизирам принудително
  • мобилизирам принудително (mobiliziram prinuditelno)to force into military service
Chinese Mandarin 拉丁, 强征入伍
  • 拉丁 (lādīng)to force into military service
  • 强征入伍to force into military service
  • 抓壮丁 (zhuāzhuàngdīng)to force into military service
  • 抓丁to force into military service
  • 拉夫 (lāfū)to force into military service
Dutch ronselaarsbende
  • ronselaarsbendeto force into military service
Finnish pakkovärvätä, shanghaijata
  • pakkovärvätäto coerce (somebody) into doing something that they are reluctant to do
  • shanghaijatato coerce (somebody) into doing something that they are reluctant to do
German zwangsrekrutieren, zwingen
  • zwangsrekrutierento force into military service
  • zwingento coerce (somebody) into doing something that they are reluctant to do
Welsh dirdorf, y près
  • dirdorfgroup that forces others into service
  • y prèsgroup that forces others into service
Cite this entry
APA

press-gang. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press-gang

MLA

“press-gang.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press-gang. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “press-gang,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press-gang.

Source: press-gang on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.