brigand

noun

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

Related Words

Relevance

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
  • People in northwest Nigeria are caught between regular attacks by bandit groups who specialize in kidnapping for ransom and Islamist militants who have been expanding their territory.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 July 2026
  • Instead, most are romantic stories about young lovers separated by fate, and the rest are swashbuckling adventures full of bandits and pirates.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 June 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
  • Sources tell Deadline that Sony Pictures is in negotiations to land the project, with Scott directing and Jackman on board to play the pirate Long John Silver.
    — Justin Kroll, Deadline, 22 July 2026
  • This uprising of students at the Athens Polytechnic University and their famous pirate-radio broadcasts are commonly understood to be the beginning of the end of the junta.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 July 2026
Definition of pirate
Noun
  • California has some of the nation’s toughest gun laws, but state lawmakers are concerned that a new technology is allowing criminals to obtain firearms by building them from scratch.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
  • This lengthy process was typical of ICE’s previous procedures to track down criminals, Sandweg said, which may have shifted under the demands of this administration’s daily arrest goals.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 18 July 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • By the time Cameron came up with the idea for The Terminator — about a robot assassin sent back in time to kill the mother of humanity’s unborn savior — Wisher was growing more interested in screenwriting.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 21 July 2026
  • Their characters — a notorious assassin and a lawyer — race across Europe, balancing brutal fights and a messy, decades-long friendship.
    — Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 16 July 2026
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • Adcock has become one of the fastest rising stars in the country music genre due to his blend of party vibes and outlaw style.
    — David Hookstead OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 July 2026
  • Pop crossovers, polished ballads and the young seeds of bro-country were what populated the radio, but Church loved harder rock influences, outlaw heroes, and even the Muscle Shoals soul.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 16 July 2026
Definition of outlaw
Noun
  • Numerous programs are being implemented to attempt to reduce the probability of recidivism through education and counseling and to reintegrate offenders into society.
    — Ronald J. Allen, Chicago Tribune, 19 July 2026
  • Ireland has approved landmark legislation to create the country’s first public register of domestic violence offenders, in a move campaigners say will empower people to check whether a potential partner has a history of violence.
    — Kara Fox, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
Definition of offender
Noun
  • Iván stars as Joseph Santiago, a former felon who uncovers a corporate cover-up while investigating a car accident on behalf of a victim’s family.
    — Jack Dunn, Variety, 16 July 2026
  • Turner was convicted in May 2025 of first-degree murder and the unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.
    — Eleanor Jacobs, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
Definition of felon

Browse Nearby Words

brigading
brigand
brigands
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Brigand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brigand. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on brigand

Nglish: Translation of brigand for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of aerie

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All