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brigand

noun

Definition of brigandnext
as in bandit
formal + old-fashioned a person who commits robbery usually as part of a group

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of brigand Their captors beset by these foreign brigands, Larys and Aegon manage to escape. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026 That’s the state Supergirl is in when she is dragged into a local dispute on some far-off planet, defending the honor of an orphaned teenage girl, Ruthye (Eve Ridley); her parents were murdered by a brigand named Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaerts). — David Sims, The Atlantic, 26 June 2026 The French-language film begins in Spain circa 1845, when Antonio, the blind knife-sharpener, returns to Seville to the great delight of local brigands and soldiers, whose blades have grown dull in his absence. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 21 May 2026 Their stories live on in Sardinian lore with an almost mythical quality, the brigands admired for their intractability. — IEEE Spectrum, 7 May 2026 Then rumors started spreading about armed brigands that would come to town to steal what little harvest folks had left, so towns raised militias to fight back. — Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 24 Sep. 2025 Captured by brigands, the immigrants are herded into a remote Libyan prison camp where they are tormented and tortured. — Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Feb. 2024 Saúl is a brigand while Isabella is a noblewoman, and the tale tells of the couple’s struggle as their families oppose their union. — Rebecca Ann Hughes, Forbes, 10 Aug. 2022 Looking eastward, the notion that Iran, which took hundreds of thousands of casualties in repelling an Iraqi juggernaut in the 1980s, is going to melt in terror in the face of several thousand ISIS brigands is absurd. — Steven Simon, Foreign Affairs, 26 Aug. 2014
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brigand
  1. bandit
  2. highwayman
  3. pirate
  4. criminal
  5. assassin
  6. outlaw
  7. offender
  8. felon
Noun
  • Goaded on by a governor, who handpicked the university president and staged a coup to overthrow one athletic director in order to hire Kiffin, the bayou bandits are proudly wearing their black hats.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Leonard, who made tens of millions in off-the-books, no-show endorsements, made out like a bandit with this settlement, especially since his $51 million contract for the coming season was not voided.
    — John Hollinger, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of bandit
Noun
  • Shortly before midnight on May 23, 1798, highwaymen just north of Dublin intercepted and set on fire a mail coach headed to Belfast.
    — Joseph Patrick Kelly, The Conversation, 20 May 2025
  • Dee is in his Springheel Jack costume, since London bobbies of that era would rather work with a mythical highwayman than a real Chinese man.
    — Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Apr. 2025
Definition of highwayman
Noun
  • Within hours, their yacht vanishes, Matt is abducted by a gang of ruthless pirates led by Langbore (Copley), and paradise becomes a trap.
    — Alex Ritman, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Bloom played the dashing blacksmith Will Turner, who teams up with the eccentric pirate Captain Jack Sparrow (Depp) to save his forever love, Elizabeth Swann (Knightley) from a gang of raucous, rival pirates.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Sep. 2026
Definition of pirate
Noun
  • Most crimes across Mexico went unsolved, and authorities sometimes appeared to be colluding with criminals instead of fighting them.
    — Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Keeping email, downloads and everyday web activity away from that machine reduces the opportunities criminals have to reach it.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • Across Greengrass’ three Bourne movies, the elite assassin turns against the clandestine institution that created him, determined to escape its grip and bring its covert operations to light.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Before Atlanta, the girls weren’t judged as heavily based on their reads or confessional assassin abilities.
    — Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • Lefty played a number of shows at CMA Fest, and on Monday was announced as one of the performers at Stagecoach 2027, with her name on the same line of the poster as Shaboozey and outlaw-country songwriter Cody Jinks.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Is that something the NFL could consider and outlaw/tell officials to clamp down on midseason?
    — Matt Barrows, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of outlaw
Noun
  • If the offender comes closer than a kilometre, the app notifies police; probation authorities will then call the victim to establish their safety and can dispatch officers to the area.
    — Will Barker, TheWeek, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Tallman is named the victim in the report, but an offender isn’t mentioned.
    — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of offender
Noun
  • Historically, that’s something that Salt Lake in particular has been good at showcasing given the intense situations that have bonded a group that, save for the felon, have almost all been on this ride since the beginning.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The report highlighted how lobbyists and brokers are charging felons up to millions of dollars to sidestep the traditional Justice Department clemency process, using insider access and social media influencers to push presidential pardons.
    — Daniel Klaidman, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of felon

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Brigand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brigand. Accessed 21 Sep. 2026.

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