highwayman

noun

Definition of highwaymannext
as in brigand
a man especially in the past who stopped travelers on roads and robbed them

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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 highwayman 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 In the irreverent retelling of the 18th-century highwayman’s life, Turpin is the most famous but least likely of robbers, whose success is defined mostly by his charm, showmanship, and great hair. — Jake Kanter, Deadline, 16 Jan. 2025 Dick Turpin was an English robber and highwayman whose criminal activities gained him notoriety in the early eighteenth century. — Ben Morse, CNN, 14 Jan. 2025 The group gets further assistance from a charming aristocratic dandy/secret highwayman named Charles Devereaux (Frank Dillane). — Ars Technica, 24 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for highwayman
  1. brigand
  2. bandit
  3. pirate
  4. assassin
  5. criminal
  6. outlaw
  7. desperado
  8. offender
Noun
  • 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
Definition of brigand
Noun
  • The film reimagines the legend of Chang’Er, the moon goddess, and her husband, the archer Hou Yi, picking up the story after Chang’Er ascends to the moon and setting her on a journey to its dark side alongside a bandit from Earth.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 4 Aug. 2026
  • In Kogi State, bandits recently raided an orphanage and took twenty-three children hostage.
    — Alexis Okeowo, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of bandit
Noun
  • But the island was also a haven for outcasts and pirates and merchants, from across Europe and the Levant and beyond, who came to the Caribbean to seek their fortunes or to help grow the fortunes of others.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The voyage started with 350 captives; almost all died or were kidnapped a second time by pirates.
    — USA Today, USA Today, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of pirate
Noun
  • Created by Tessa Coates, Ride or Die is a spy action comedy about an assassin, Judith (Waddingham) whose latest case inadvertently involves her best friend of more than 20 years, Debbie (Spencer), a politician’s wife.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 4 Aug. 2026
  • This show loves nothing more this season than to introduce a potential assassin and promptly thwart his plan via blade to the head or neck.
    — Brian Grubb, Vulture, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • North Carolina politician says Democrats are coddling criminals Records also list a September 2025 simple-assault charge and a March 2025 charge of assault on a female.
    — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Even if Anna Pigeon carries a gun with cuffs, as real-life law enforcement rangers do, there's much more to the job and character than chasing down criminals.
    — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • The outlaw country legend issued a rallying cry across his social media channels on Tuesday, sharing a statement that condemns rapidly escalating data center construction across the United States.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 29 July 2026
  • About 25 miles north on I-35 from downtown Kansas City sits Kearney, Missouri, hometown to that famous outlaw Jesse James.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 21 July 2026
Definition of outlaw
Noun
  • Crowds of the curious milled through the gloomy building, seeking to view the body of the most notorious desperado of the year.
    — Cassidy Alexander, AJC.com, 23 July 2026
  • Today, Moscow is glamorous but sealed off and duller than the 1990s desperado days.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
Definition of desperado
Noun
  • This high-security prison is a sprawling complex that houses thousands of detainees, including notorious gangsters, terrorists and prominent white-collar offenders.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 9 Aug. 2026
  • But court documents filed by Bussett in December allege that both victims and their families were told by the district attorney’s office that Butler would plead guilty and serve time at a juvenile facility in exchange for a youthful offender status.
    — Minyvonne Burke, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of offender

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Cite this Entry

“Highwayman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/highwayman. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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