bootleg

American  

[boot-leg] / ˈbutˌlɛg /

noun

1. alcoholic liquor unlawfully made, sold, or transported, without registration or payment of taxes.

2. the part of a boot that covers the leg.

3. 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.

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verb (used with object)

bootlegged, bootlegging

1. to deal in (liquor or other goods) unlawfully.

verb (used without object)

bootlegged, bootlegging

1. to make, transport, or sell something, especially liquor, illegally or without registration or payment of taxes.

adjective

1. made, sold, or transported unlawfully.

2. illegal or clandestine.

3. of or relating to bootlegging.

bootleg British  

/ ˈbuːtˌlɛɡ /

verb

1. to make, carry, or sell (illicit goods, esp alcohol)

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noun

1. something made or sold illicitly, such as alcohol during Prohibition in the US

2. an illegally made copy of a CD, tape, etc

adjective

1. produced, distributed, or sold illicitly

   bootleg whisky

   bootleg tapes

Other Word Forms

• bootlegger noun

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.

Example Sentences

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

Various deluxe editions also come with bootleg recordings from a 1975 concert, concert films on Blu-ray, a hardcover book with never-seen photographs, a comic-book tour poster and more.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 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

Playing himself, the filmmaker drives a cab around Tehran engaging with a variety of passengers: a bootleg DVD seller, an injured man and his distraught wife, two elderly women in a rush.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2025

And he brought me and Jazz bootleg movies to watch.

From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds

Related Words

• contraband
• illicit
• pirated
• smuggled
• unauthorized