ENGLISH
REFERENCE

pirate

n. countable
C1 Advanced Oxford US //ˈpaɪɹət// UK //pˈaɪɹət// pi·rate

n. a person who attacks and robs ships at sea. You can also use this word for someone who illegally copies movies, music, or software without paying for them.

n. a person who commits robbery or violence at sea for personal gain, typically from a ship. In modern contexts, it refers to an individual who reproduces or distributes copyrighted material without authorization.


SIMPLE

The pirate ship sailed across the ocean.

CONTEXTUAL

Authorities arrested the man for acting as a digital pirate by hosting thousands of stolen movies on his website.

COMPLEX

While historical accounts often romanticize the golden age of piracy, the reality for a merchant sailor was a constant fear of being boarded by a pirate crew in lawless waters.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English pirate, pirat, pyrat, from Old French pirate, from Latin pīrāta (“pirate”), from Ancient Greek πειρατής (peiratḗs), from πεῖρα (peîra, “trial, attempt, plot”). Displaced native Old English wīċing, which was the word for both "pirate" and "viking".

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