pirate

American  

[pahy-ruht] / ˈpaɪ rət /

noun

1. a person who robs or commits illegal violence at sea or on the shores of the sea.

   Synonyms:

   plunderer, corsair, buccaneer, freebooter

2. a ship used by such persons.

3. any plunderer, predator, etc..

   confidence men, slumlords, and other pirates.

4. a person who uses or reproduces the work or invention of another without authorization.

5. Also called pirate stream.  Geology. a stream that diverts into its own flow the headwaters of another stream, river, etc.

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verb (used with object)

pirated, pirating

1. to commit piracy upon; plunder; rob.

2. to take by piracy.

   to pirate gold.

3. to use or reproduce (a book, an invention, etc.) without authorization or legal right.

   to pirate hit records.

4. to take or entice away for one's own use.

   Our competitor is trying to pirate our best salesman.

verb (used without object)

pirated, pirating

1. to commit or practice piracy.

pirate British  

/ ˈpaɪrɪt, paɪˈrætɪkəl /

noun

1. a person who commits piracy

2. 1. a vessel used by pirates

   2. ( as modifier )

      a pirate ship

3. a person who illicitly uses or appropriates someone else's literary, artistic, or other work

4. 1. a person or group of people who broadcast illegally

   2. ( as modifier )

      a pirate radio station

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verb

1. (tr) to use, appropriate, or reproduce (artistic work, ideas, etc) illicitly

Other Word Forms

• piratelike adjective
• piratic adjective
• piratical adjective
• piratically adverb
• unpirated adjective
• unpiratical adjective
• unpiratically adverb

Etymology

Origin of pirate

1250–1300; Middle English < Latin pīrāta < Greek peirātḗs, equivalent to peirā- , variant stem of peirân to attack + -tēs agent noun suffix

Example Sentences

Disney accuses ByteDance of loading its Seedance service “with a pirated library of Disney’s copyrighted characters from Star Wars, Marvel, and other Disney franchises.”

From Los Angeles Times

It was shiny and sharp and made her feel like a pirate.

From Literature

In our quest to catch the neighborhood porch pirate, we’ve inadvertently built a dragnet that catches much more.

From The Wall Street Journal

Danny had always wanted to go on a boat and imagine what a pirate might have felt like.

From Literature

“Because that’s what he looks like to me. Only I never heard of a pirate in a submarine before.”

From Literature

Related Words

• raider