Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1800-1900
Origin: Shanghai; from the use of force or deception to get sailors for ships going to China

shanghai

 verb
     
shang‧hai past tense and past participle shanghaied, present participle shanghaiing [transitive] old-fashioned
to trick or force someone into doing something unwillingly
shanghai somebody into doing something
I got shanghaied into organizing the kids' party.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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