Idiom
robber baron
Meaning
Especially in the 19th and early 20th centuries, a business tycoon who had great wealth and influence but whose methods were morally questionable and often unethical.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“The robber baron built his fortune by crushing all his competitors.”
“Historians often describe the industrialist as a robber baron because he used ruthless tactics to gain total control over the railroad industry.”
“While the city benefited from his massive infrastructure projects, many critics labeled him a robber baron for his exploitative labor practices and disregard for the public good.”
Examples
simple
“The robber baron built his fortune by crushing all his competitors.”
contextual
“Historians often describe the industrialist as a robber baron because he used ruthless tactics to gain total control over the railroad industry.”
complex
“While the city benefited from his massive infrastructure projects, many critics labeled him a robber baron for his exploitative labor practices and disregard for the public good.”
Key words
Related idioms
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