Barabbas

American  

[buh-rab-uhs] / bəˈræb əs /

noun

1. (in the Bible) a condemned criminal pardoned by Pilate in order to appease the mob, which demanded that he be freed instead of Jesus.

---

Barabbas British  

/ bəˈræbəs /

noun

1. New Testament a condemned robber who was released at the Passover instead of Jesus (Matthew 27:16)

---

Example Sentences

The "family friendly" show had been described as "a darkly imaginative, richly rendered fantasy story", and had been written by playwright Zinnie Harris with music by Louis Barabbas.

From BBC • Jan. 29, 2025

“A Hum San Sui,” by Kentaro Kujirai and Barabbas Okuyama, the Japanese choreographers and performers, seemed ill-served by film.

From New York Times • Jan. 16, 2022

Her would-be messiah is a puzzling drifter marginal to his own story; the ferocity of Barabbas and Judas seizes the narrative and occupies its centre ground.

From The Guardian • Nov. 23, 2012

But producers also continued casting Borgnine in action films such as "Three Bad Men," "The Vikings," "Torpedo Run," "Barabbas," "The Dirty Dozen" and "The Wild Bunch."

From Seattle Times • Jul. 8, 2012

Barabbas and his bravest lieutenants, including the Son of the Desert, had fallen into the hands of the rulers.

From In Both Worlds by Holcombe, William Henry