as in extortion
the exaction of a grossly excessive charge for goods or services
what some rock superstars charge for concert tickets is simply highway robbery
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of highway robbery
Three games into his Colorado Rapids tenure, the club paying $125,000 in General Allocation Money — less than the going price of an international roster slot — is looking like highway robbery.
—
Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 14 Sep. 2025
This was a dangerous situation and was literally highway robbery.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 July 2025
Hospitals have gotten away with this sort of highway robbery for years, thanks to a combination of consolidation and misleading arguments.
—Craig M. Wax, Boston Herald, 13 June 2025
To me, one meant highway robbery and the other meant equal pain, equal pleasure.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2025
This highway robbery of our funds directly out of our bank account is a betrayal of everyone who calls New York City home.
—Maria Ramirez Uribe, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2025
The Nets‘ famous offseason trade with the Knicks — centered around Mikal Bridges — looks more like highway robbery each day.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2025
Jerry showed no sign of clocking their absence, though Bill wasn’t watching too closely—an act of moral highway robbery, maybe, but what was depredation if not an escape from the mundane?
—Hazlitt, 9 Dec. 2024
Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 14 Sep. 2025
This was a dangerous situation and was literally highway robbery.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 July 2025
Hospitals have gotten away with this sort of highway robbery for years, thanks to a combination of consolidation and misleading arguments.
—Craig M. Wax, Boston Herald, 13 June 2025
To me, one meant highway robbery and the other meant equal pain, equal pleasure.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2025
This highway robbery of our funds directly out of our bank account is a betrayal of everyone who calls New York City home.
—Maria Ramirez Uribe, Austin American Statesman, 10 Feb. 2025
The Nets‘ famous offseason trade with the Knicks — centered around Mikal Bridges — looks more like highway robbery each day.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2025
Jerry showed no sign of clocking their absence, though Bill wasn’t watching too closely—an act of moral highway robbery, maybe, but what was depredation if not an escape from the mundane?
—Hazlitt, 9 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for highway robbery
Noun
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Federal prosecutors there indicted Venezuelan nationals accused of participating in organized robberies, kidnappings, extortion schemes and firearms offenses tied to the transnational gang Tren de Aragua.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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Persico, 62, was the heir apparent to the crime family in 2023 when he was sentenced to five years behind bars for a labor union extortion plot.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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An honor council, comprised of administrators, teachers, and members of the student government, would sit in judgment on cases of alleged cheating.—
Nell Freudenberger,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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In the wake of the cheating, FIS has modified its rules and brought in a coordinator to oversee screening of gear and hired former Austrian ski jumper Mathias Hafele to work as equipment expert.—
Brian Melley,
Chicago Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Soon after, Bradley stumbles on Zuri’s body and confronts Linda, resulting in a brutal fight that includes stabbing, scalp ripping, and some really upsetting eye gouging.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
30 Jan. 2026
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In the past, Amazon has suppressed easily accessible buy buttons to prevent price-gouging or pressure brands to lower prices to match pricing on their own website or competitors.—
Jacqueline Munis,
Fortune,
20 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Highway robbery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/highway%20robbery. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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