1. the practice of forcing people to serve in the navy or military
Usage: historical; nautical

Examples

• British impressments of American sailors were a major cause of the War of 1812.
• The Royal Navy’s impressments created diplomatic tensions with neutral countries.
• Colonial ports lived in fear of impressments by naval press gangs.
• Maritime workers often hid when ships arrived to avoid impressments.
• The practice of impressments was eventually abolished in the 19th century.
• American merchants protested against the impressments of their crew members.