Of American-English origin, the verb shanghai means: – to force someone to join a ship lacking a full crew by drugging them or using other underhand means; – and, by extension, to coerce or trick someone into a place or position or into doing something.

What does shanghai mean as a verb?

shanghai \shang-HYE\ verb. 1 a : to put aboard a ship by force often with the help of liquor or a drug. b : to put by force or threat of force into or as if into a place of detention. 2 : to put by trickery into an undesirable position.

Where does the verb to shanghai come from?

Etymology. The verb "shanghai" joined the lexicon with "crimping" and "sailor thieves" in the 1850s, possibly because Shanghai was a common destination of the ships with abducted crews. The term has since expanded to mean "kidnapped" or "induced to do something by means of fraud."