bootleg
Americannoun
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alcoholic liquor unlawfully made, sold, or transported, without registration or payment of taxes.
-
the part of a boot that covers the leg.
-
something, as a recording, made, reproduced, or sold illegally or without authorization.
a flurry of bootlegs to cash in on the rock star's death.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
adjective
-
made, sold, or transported unlawfully.
-
illegal or clandestine.
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of or relating to bootlegging.
verb
noun
-
something made or sold illicitly, such as alcohol during Prohibition in the US
-
an illegally made copy of a CD, tape, etc
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bootleg
An Americanism first recorded in 1625–35; boot 1 + leg; secondary senses arose from practice of hiding a liquor bottle in the leg of one's boot
Explanation
Use the adjective bootleg to describe something that is sold illegally, usually because it was stolen in the first place. If you download a movie on your computer and then sell it to a friend, it's a bootleg film. Bootleg is good for describing something that's stolen, smuggled, or pirated. You can use it as a verb, too, when you're talking about selling something illegal or obtained in a sneaky way, like secret recordings of a rock concert or contraband candy at summer camp. The word bootleg, which originally meant simply "the leg of a boot," refers to alcohol smugglers' trick of hiding flasks inside their boots.
Vocabulary lists containing bootleg
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For decades, record labels reigned despite the occasional bootleg tape.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026
Even Cook bought bootleg copies of the song, some of which had been taped off his live sets on BBC Radio 1 and pressed to vinyl.
From BBC • Dec. 10, 2025
In between the tribute bands and memorabilia vendors, one of the big attractions was screenings of various rare or bootleg film footage, screened in cavernous hotel ballrooms.
From Salon • Nov. 25, 2025
She introduced Gigi to several musicals, from a bootleg version of “Legally Blonde,” to her first live theater experience in “Wicked,” to the cast album of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights.”
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2025
After dinner, Mom opens my bedroom door as I’m perusing the bootleg math exam.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
