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n. 1. a. Goods prohibited by law or treaty from being imported or exported. b. Goods that are possessed contrary to law or rule, as in a prison or school. 2. a. Illegal traffic in contraband; smuggling. b. Smuggled goods. 3. Goods that may be seized and confiscated by a belligerent if shipped to another belligerent by a neutral. 4. An escaped slave during the Civil War who fled to or was taken behind Union lines. adj. Prohibited from being imported or exported. [Italian contrabbando : contra-, against (from Latin contrā-; see CONTRA-) + bando, legal proclamation (from Late Latin bannus, of Germanic origin; see bhā-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots).] contra·band′age n. contra·band′ist n. |
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