buccaneer

noun buc·ca·neer \ ˌbə-kə-ˈnir \

Updated on: 1 Apr 2018

Definition of buccaneer

1 : any of the freebooters preying on Spanish ships and settlements especially in 17th century West Indies; broadly : pirate

2 : an unscrupulous adventurer especially in politics or business

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buccaneer

intransitive verb

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buccaneerish

play \-ish\ adjective

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Examples of buccaneer in a Sentence

buccaneers who preyed upon treasure-laden ships in the Caribbean

Recent Examples of buccaneer from the Web

Palmieri, an aging art buccaneer and former Vietnam draft dodger, remains very much alive today, now in his 70s.

— erik spanberg, The Christian Science Monitor, "'The Last Wild Men of Borneo' is a real-life adventure tale about two expats in the jungle," 27 Mar. 2018
The very first seconds of your buccaneer career are marred with strange, artificial limitations that continue to pockmark the rest of the game.

— steven strom, Ars Technica, "Sea of Thieves makes a weak, meandering first impression," 24 Mar. 2018
That’s this week’s profile of Elon Musk, tech buccaneer.

— marshall kilduff, San Francisco Chronicle, "Last Word: Elon Musk is a visionary in an era that needs one," 9 Feb. 2018
Answer: Give them a pirate’s eye patch, a buccaneer’s bandana and a tankard of rum.

— tom krasovic, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Raiders game reveals depth of anti-Spanos sentiment for S.D. Chargers fans," 12 Oct. 2017
Besides killing and cooking critters, mariners and buccaneers also brought rats and other pests with them to the islands that decimated the local populations.

— sam schipani, Smithsonian, "The Island Where Scientists Bring Extinct Reptiles Back to Life (Nope, Not That One)," 9 Oct. 2017
The adversaries conduct a formal parley, like buccaneers, declare mutual war and everyone has a fabulous time.

— meghan cox gurdon, WSJ, "The Book Your Kids Should Read This Summer," 14 July 2017
Disney reportedly tested out video mapping of the individual pirates on the Columbia that would have transformed the flesh-and-blood buccaneers into skeleton scallywags in an homage to the movies.

— brady macdonald, latimes.com, "Out with the old, in with the new: Disneyland’s ‘Fantasmic’ drops old favorites for new stars," 25 July 2017
Other ships ferried passengers, pine and, less nobly, freshwater buccaneers eager to raid other ships' cargo.

— chris mcnamara, chicagotribune.com, "A deep dive into Michigan's eerie, beautiful Shipwreck Coast," 18 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'buccaneer.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of buccaneer

French boucanier woodsman, pirate (in the 17th century West Indies), from boucaner to smoke meat, from boucan wooden frame for smoking meat, from Tupi mokaʔẽ́, mbokaʔẽ́, from mo-, mbo- causative marker + kaʔẽ to be roasted, dried

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1686

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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