as in alcohol
illegally produced liquor
getting caught with bootleg during Prohibition could have resulted in a jail sentence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in unauthorized
made or sold illegally
During the Prohibition era, many people made their own bootleg whiskey. He was arrested for selling bootleg copies of the album.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to smuggle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bootleg
Katherine Schulten, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025
Not long after came the countless memes and unauthorized Etsy merch, with Francis’ likeness featured on a slew of T-shirts, sweatshirts and mugs in faux ‘90s bootleg designs.
—Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 24 Apr. 2025
Susan Saulny, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024
Land of the Free, Home of the Bootleggers When technology made music mobile, the American South changed from one type of bootlegging industry to another: copying and selling records.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for bootleg
Noun
The spread of bootleg clips prompted NBC Universal to ask YouTube to remove the clip and other NBC footage for copyright reasons in February 2006.
—Katherine Schulten, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025
Not long after came the countless memes and unauthorized Etsy merch, with Francis’ likeness featured on a slew of T-shirts, sweatshirts and mugs in faux ‘90s bootleg designs.
—Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 24 Apr. 2025
Verb
This was the era of Prohibition, dominated by bootlegging gangsters—Chicago alone was said to be home to 1,300 gangs—and some police departments adopted increasingly brutal tactics to wring the truth out of suspects: beating and burning detainees with cigarettes, or depriving them of sleep.
—Susan Saulny, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024
Land of the Free, Home of the Bootleggers When technology made music mobile, the American South changed from one type of bootlegging industry to another: copying and selling records.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for bootleg
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bootleg
Noun
-
On Saturday, May 24, at about 6:22 p.m., David Blanchard, 21, of Franklin, who allegedly had an open container of alcohol in his pick-up truck and was operating under the influence of alcohol, struck a car carrying a family of four, the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office said.—
KC Baker,
People.com,
5 June 2025
-
Real paint thinner is a solvent used for thinning and removing paint and is typically made of alcohols, esters, petroleum products, organic solvents, and ketones, but the specific makeup varies from brand to brand.—
Kamron Sanders,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 June 2025
Adjective
-
At the top Plus Extended tier, Bitdefender watches for abuse of your SSN, reports unauthorized change of address events, and scans court records.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
7 June 2025
-
What happened adidas recently learned that an unauthorized external party gained access to certain customer data through a third-party customer service provider.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
4 June 2025
Verb
-
Ukraine's Security Service smuggled first-person view drones laden with small explosives onto trucks driven deep into Russia.—
Charles Maynes,
NPR,
2 June 2025
-
The man tried to smuggle the 17 exotic birds on May 4 via the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego, according to a complaint filed in federal court.—
Sara Schilling,
Sacbee.com,
21 May 2025
Noun
-
For so long, among an army of foes, cocaine led the charge, but, in time, so did the booze.—
Brendan Quinn,
New York Times,
16 May 2025
-
The next day, the FWC found 61 empty booze bottles and cans on the boat, which had been carrying 12 underage girls.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
14 May 2025
Verb
-
All are characters from Sanrio, the merchandising company behind her universe of cuteness.—
Chris Lau,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2025
-
Media coverage excites executives and, when merchandised across digital marketing channels, has tremendous reach and impact.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
En-suite bathrooms boast both indoor and outdoor bathtubs (stone inside; copper outside) and showers, while air conditioning, high-speed wifi, and a minibar brimming with drinks and homemade goodies round out the long list of amenities.—
Alexandra Kirkman,
Forbes.com,
9 June 2025
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Consumers are increasingly interested in more enjoyable formats — think drinks and snacks over powders.—
Emily Burns,
Footwear News,
9 June 2025
Verb
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Currently displaying rows 1 to 5. Boccia Para judo Para table tennis Para taekwondo Wheelchair fencing The venue plan approved by the International Paralympic Committee places the majority of the Paralympic events in L.A., with additional sites in Long Beach, Carson and Arcadia.—
Thuc Nhi Nguyen,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2025
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The reptile made it into the pool despite the home's pool being fully fenced in, the post said.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
2 June 2025
Noun
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Its moonshine is made of 100% corn.—
Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton,
The Denver Post,
30 Dec. 2024
-
The free gift appears to be an Uzi, some ammo, a helmet, armour and a bottle of moonshine, which certainly isn’t a bad collection of loot for free.—
Mike Stubbs,
Forbes,
14 Oct. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Bootleg.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bootleg. Accessed 13 Jun. 2025.
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