variants or less commonly landgrab
: a usually swift acquisition of property (such as land or patent rights) often by fraud or force
land-grabber noun

Examples of land grab in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The industry's hunger has led to a data land grab: Companies are vying to teach their baby AIs using information sucked in from many different sources — sometimes with the owner's permission, often without it — before new laws and court rulings make that harder. Ina Fried, Axios, 4 Nov. 2024 Tools for Humanity itself is venture-backed, and the foundation, in its land grab for the modern identity verification market and your personal biometric data, is focused on scale, scale, scale. Lauren Goode, WIRED, 17 Oct. 2024 The government's been accused of carrying out a land grab to secure supplies of lithium, and of causing the disaster through geoengineering. Emma Woollacott, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024 The shift to frozen desserts is just the latest twist in this year’s land grab among fast food companies. Chris Morris, Fortune, 26 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for land grab 

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of land grab was in 1860

Dictionary Entries Near land grab

Cite this Entry

“Land grab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/land%20grab. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!