as in buccaneer
someone who engages in robbery of ships at sea
Sir Francis Drake was a British pirate who preyed on Spanish ships with the connivance of Elizabeth I
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to seize
to take or make use of under a guise of authority but without actual right
using pirated software that was subject to copyright
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pirate
Hannah Walhout, Travel + Leisure, 9 Aug. 2025
The scar on one of her eyes gives her a bit of a pirate look, but don’t worry.
—Maryanne Dell, Oc Register, 9 Aug. 2025
Blake Brittain, USA Today, 26 June 2025
That is, as long as Anthropic purchased those books and didn’t pirate them.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for pirate
Noun
People in the region’s sparse settlements dove for pearls and fished for grouper and sea bream, and were visited by the occasional trader or pirate.
—Hannah Walhout, Travel + Leisure, 9 Aug. 2025
The scar on one of her eyes gives her a bit of a pirate look, but don’t worry.
—Maryanne Dell, Oc Register, 9 Aug. 2025
Verb
The complaint against Microsoft came a day after a California federal judge ruled that Anthropic made fair use under U.S. copyright law of authors' material to train its AI systems but may still be liable for pirating their books.
—Blake Brittain, USA Today, 26 June 2025
That is, as long as Anthropic purchased those books and didn’t pirate them.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for pirate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pirate
Noun
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Over on the fall/winter 2025 runways, Ralph Lauren and Zimmermann took a more subtle approach via elegant knee-high leather boots with buccaneer buckle detailing and a slight scrunch.—
Emma Spedding,
Vogue,
24 July 2025
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Guests may spot Rummy greeting buccaneers from his perch along the bar.—
Megan duBois,
Southern Living,
14 July 2025
Verb
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In total, authorities seized about $3.7 million in Home Depot property, as well as $800,000 in cash.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
28 Aug. 2025
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Soon after, romance writers seized the topic and have refused to let go, starting with Jill Myles’s Wicked Games, published under the pseudonym Jessica Clare in 2011.—
Hannah Berman
August 27,
Literary Hub,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Less savory characters soon saw the city's strategic value, too, with notorious privateers and pirates like Captain Henry Morgan and Calico Jack setting up shop in Port Royal.—
Carley Rojas Avila,
Travel + Leisure,
2 Aug. 2025
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Although the passengers managed to swim or be hauled on ropes to shore, much of the ship’s cargo—which included tea, brandy, nails, iron, and Wright’s paintings—was lost, washed out of the ship’s hold and either plundered by a passing privateer and people living nearby or sunk below the waves.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 July 2025
Verb
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Engage In Reflective Thinking Summer is the perfect time to steal away to a quiet, shady spot and do some of the reflective thinking that supports a successful life.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
21 Aug. 2025
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His family hid in the woods, sleeping in tents made of pine needles and stealing vegetables from nearby farms.—
Jessica Tzikas,
Sun Sentinel,
21 Aug. 2025
Noun
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After Columbus’s first footfall in the New World, Cuba fell prey to every manner of European freebooter.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
Foreign Affairs,
14 Dec. 2021
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There is widespread, cross-partisan public support for finally clamping down on these corporate freebooters.—
Prem Thakker,
The New Republic,
23 Feb. 2023
Verb
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Dude confiscated it for greenbacks, melted it down, and buried it?—
Brian Domitrovic,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
-
The artist Gao Zhen, famous for his depictions of Mao Zedong, the Communist regime’s founder, was detained last year, and the authorities confiscated several of his works that had been created more than a decade earlier.—
Michael Schuman,
The Atlantic,
26 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Vex have new units called Kobolds, Fallen have flying corsairs.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
6 May 2025
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In 1544, Barbarossa, a corsair who had risen to become admiral of the Ottoman navy, raided the island and carried away into slavery almost a thousand inhabitants—practically the island’s entire population.—
Lee Marshall,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Apr. 2025
Verb
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When the fatigue threshold is hit, a generative AI model can automatically suggest a range of alternative creatives, using insights from predictive models to determine which assets are most likely to grab attention.—
Sergii Denysenko,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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And since Birkenstocks almost never go on sale, this is the time to grab a pair before the season shifts.—
Rosie Marder,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pirate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pirate. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.
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