kidnap
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary EnglishRelated topics: Crimekidnapkid‧nap /ˈkɪdnæp/ ●●○ verb (kidnapped, kidnapping also kidnaped, kidnaping American English) [transitive] SCCTAKE/BRINGto take someone somewhere illegally by force, often in order to get money for returning them → ransom Police appealed for witnesses after a woman was kidnapped at gunpoint. —kidnapper noun [countable] the hunt for the kidnapper —kidnapping (also kidnap) noun [countable, uncountable] a series of kidnappings→ See Verb tableOrigin kidnap (1600-1700) kid “child” + nap “to take, seize” ((17-19 centuries))