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desperado

American  
[des-puh-rah-doh, -rey-] / ˌdɛs pəˈrɑ doʊ, -ˈreɪ- /

noun

plural

desperadoes, desperados

  1. a bold, reckless criminal or outlaw, especially in the early days of the American West.

desperado British  
/ ˌdɛspəˈrɑːdəʊ /

noun

  1. a reckless or desperate person, esp one ready to commit any violent illegal act

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of desperado

1600–10; probably pseudo-Spanish alteration of desperate (as noun, now obsolete), in same sense

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.