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appropriation

appropriation

28 6.9
Taking something for yourself, often without permission
  • noun
  • /əˌproʊpriˈeɪʃən/
translation icon : apropiación
  • Many artists have faced criticism for appropriation when they use styles from cultures not their own.
  • cultural appropriation
  • private appropriation
  • appropriation of land

And also to, I mean the whole thing about like cultural appropriation that.

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Examples

  • The thing about the cultural appropriation in this movie, is there were Asian American actors who actually worked in Hollywood.

  • My interpretation of the Proviso, far from ruling out original appropriation, actually requires it.

    Academic text (1990)
  • - But then I also thought, you know, it's a little bit of cultural appropriation here.

  • So you had this kind of appropriation frequently.

  • It's just a complete appropriation.

  • "When a trend moves from one culture to another, it is called 'appropriation.'

    Academic text (2012)
  • In some countries, such conflicts erupted over the appropriation of foreign aid.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Upon closer examination of teens' media practices in this study, two types of appropriation have been discerned.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Plascencia maintains, however, that low riders recognize the appropriation and manipulation of their popular expressive form.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Cultural appropriation occurs when someone adopts elements of another culture without permission.

Synonyms

theft
vsappropriation
356 1.1

An act of taking someone else's property without permission to keep it

sometimes involves taking for use without the clear intent to keep
acquisition
vsappropriation
147 4.6

Getting something to own, often by buying, like a company or a painting

can include taking without permission and thus lacks the presumption of legitimacy
plagiarism
vsappropriation
47 6.0

Copying someone else's words or ideas and pretending they are your own

can mean taking or using without copying or falsely claiming original ownership
gaining control
vsappropriation
20 5.6

Taking land, buildings, or other property, often by force

can occur without force and may simply mean taking for personal use
annexation
vsappropriation
16 7.5

The act of a country adding land to make it its own

is broader and applies to many items, not only land or territory
borrowing
vsappropriation
10 3.4

Taking words, ideas, or styles from other people and using them in your work

may instead imply permanent taking for personal use rather than temporary credited use
stealing
vsappropriation
5 1.0

Taking something that belongs to another person without permission

may also include using things without permission not only keeping
usurpation
vsappropriation
5 9.3

Taking power, position, property or rights without the legal right to do so

focuses on ordinary taking or use rather than seizing authority or power
misappropriation
vsappropriation
  • Formal
5 8.6

Taking money or things you were trusted with and using them for yourself

is broader and may lack the entrusted or dishonest element
expropriation
vsappropriation
  • Formal
3 9.1

The taking of private land by the government to use for a public project

often refers to private or informal taking and may lack legal authority
disappropriation
vsappropriation
  • Formal
9.9

Taking something away from the person who owns or uses it

may instead mean using or taking for oneself rather than removing ownership
reappropriation
vsappropriation
  • Formal
8.9

Using cultural objects or images in new ways to change their meaning

is more general and may mean using something for oneself without transforming it
acquiring
vsappropriation
3.7

Getting something so it belongs to you

may also mean taking for oneself without consent rather than rightful transfer
procurance
vsappropriation
  • Archaic
9.9

Getting something, often by finding or buying it

may in contrast include unauthorized use or taking for personal benefit

Antonyms

1.0

Official approval that lets you do something

Compounds

18 6.7

A proposal that lets the government spend public money for a specific purpose

How Legitimate

use
1.0
borrowing
60 2.3
appropriation
28 6.9
misappropriation
  • Formal
5 8.6
theft
356 1.1

Surface Forms

appropriation singular

Morphology

appropriation = appropriate (transparent) = appropriate + ion

Formed by nominalizing the verb 'appropriate' (to take), so the meaning 'the act of taking' is directly derived.

Etymology

Appropriation comes from the Latin root proprius meaning 'own', the same root as the everyday word property. So to appropriate something is to make it 'your own', which helps explain how it can mean taking or using something, sometimes without permission.