Word
corsair
Phoneticscor·sair
US/ˈkɔɹsɛɹ/
UK/kˈɔːseə/
Definition
n. a pirate who sails the sea to attack ships and steal their goods. This word is often used to describe pirates from the Mediterranean in the past.
n. a privateer or pirate who operates from a coastal base, typically in the Mediterranean, to conduct raids on merchant vessels. Often used historically to describe the Barbary corsairs.
Examples
“The corsair captured several ships during the summer raids.”
“Historians study the tactics of the corsair to understand how Mediterranean piracy threatened European trade routes in the sixteenth century.”
“The corsair's fleet was a significant threat to the safety of the coastal towns, forcing local governments to pay heavy tributes to avoid further attacks.”
Examples
simple
“The corsair captured several ships during the summer raids.”
contextual
“Historians study the tactics of the corsair to understand how Mediterranean piracy threatened European trade routes in the sixteenth century.”
complex
“The corsair's fleet was a significant threat to the safety of the coastal towns, forcing local governments to pay heavy tributes to avoid further attacks.”
Etymology
Borrowed from French corsaire, from Medieval Latin cursārius (“pirate”), from Latin cursus (“course, a running; plunder, hostile inroad”). Doublet of courser and hussar.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/corsair