variants
or desperados
as in bandits
old-fashioned
a violent criminal who is not afraid of getting hurt or caught
A documentary about some notorious desperados of the Wild West.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 desperadoes
Most are not desperados on the run.
—
William Morris, Des Moines Register, 4 Mar. 2026
These are desperadoes in the White House.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 26 Nov. 2025
William Morris, Des Moines Register, 4 Mar. 2026
These are desperadoes in the White House.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 26 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desperadoes
Noun
-
The movie is understood to follow a sheriff and a doctor who seek revenge against a group of bandits who use the cover of a torrential thunderstorm to rob and terrorize the occupants of a small town.—
Justin Kroll,
Deadline,
24 Apr. 2026
-
On Derby Day in 1923, four masked bandits raided the hotel poker room, escaping into the crowds with what would now amount to a small fortune.—
Hillary Richard,
Robb Report,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Tens of thousands of offenders are released each year while their cases proceed in the court system, and hundreds are placed in the court’s GPS program (the sheriff’s electronic monitoring program is not accepting new participants).—
Silvana Tabares,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
-
However, the balance of these facilities could be correctional facilities for the worst offenders of the public trust with respect to fraud and corruption.—
Kaitlyn Schallhorn,
Oc Register,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
The ones to watch out for are the ones who should be villains that aren’t.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
4 May 2026
-
The iconic heroes and villains will join familiar faces already found throughout the outpost, including Ahsoka Tano, the Mandalorian, Grogu, R2-D2, Rey and more.—
Colson Thayer,
PEOPLE,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Small, phallic-looking worms rummaged through ocean-floor sediments while blind swimming beasts flung out whiplike tentacles to ensnare prey.—
Marlowe Starling,
Quanta Magazine,
1 May 2026
-
Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams This is an extraordinary book by a woman who served as a government-relations executive at Facebook, working directly under Sheryl Sandberg, Joel Kaplan, and Mark Zuckerberg—the company’s three big beasts.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Policy favored the monsters who plot in the background, more Kissinger than Kennedy.—
Eli Durst,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
The titular monsters in this anthology series tend to do well at the Emmys (Evan Peters as Jeffrey Dahmer and Cooper Koch as Erik Menendez were both nominated).—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
2 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Desperadoes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desperadoes. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
