Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A robber or bandit, especially one of an outlaw band.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A sort of irregular foot-soldier.
- n. A robber; a freebooter; a highwayman; especially, one of a gang of robbers living in secret retreats in mountains or forests.
- n. Synonyms Bandit, etc. See robber.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. obsolete A light-armed, irregular foot soldier.
- n. A lawless fellow who lives by plunder; one of a band of robbers; especially, one of a gang living in mountain retreats; a highwayman; a freebooter.
WordNet 3.0
- n. an armed thief who is (usually) a member of a band
Etymologies
- From Middle English circa 1400, from Old French brigand ("foot soldier") attested from 1421, from Latin brigō ("to fight"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English brigaunt, from Old French, from Old Italian brigante, skirmisher, from present participle of brigare, to fight; see brigade. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“It would be grossly unfair to apply the name brigand to the Mainotes and similar clans, who had to choose between being flayed by the Turks or living by the sword under their own law.”
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3 "Brescia" to "Bulgaria"
“A sherrif who executes a brigand isn't a hero, he's just doing his job - unless the brigand is a larger than life figure, in which case, he becomes the more interesting character.”
“Thus, in all imaginative countries, the brigand is a hero; even the assassin who shoots his victim from behind a hedge appeals to the fancy in Tipperary or on the Abruzzian hills.”
“The Latin words for robber are fur and latro; the former taken from the Greek for, from GREEK íþþþ or fhrw, Latin fero, I carry away; the latter from laqrw, I play the part of a brigand, which is derived from lhqw, Latin lateo, I conceal myself.”
What is Property? An Inquiry into the Principle of Right and of Government.
“Those times were somewhat wild and barbarous, signore, and a gentleman who protected his estates and asked tribute of strangers was termed a brigand, and became highly respected.”
“It was all merely a bit of American "bluff," and it succeeded because the brigand was a coward, and dared not emulate his daughter's courage.”
“Paulo called the brigand's attention to the fact that they could be easily seen from the other side of the valley.”
“The withdrawal of the brigand was a signal for a regular mob of the lawless men to make their appearance.”
Jack Harkaway and His Son's Escape from the Brigand's of Greece
“My brigand is a lighthouse-keeper, and welcomes me in a quiet way, glad, evidently, to see the face of a civilized being.”
The Complete Project Gutenberg Writings of Charles Dudley Warner
“A brigand is a fine, brave, terrible soldier, who is not afraid of anything!”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘brigand’.
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Bad Options
words for those who commit particular crimes: i.e., bank robber, arsonist, etc.
liar, cheat, traitor, arsonist, felon, braggard, thief, profiteer, impostor, phony, fraud, culprit and 212 more...
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Words build meanings from origins( et...
These come from gamma meditation ,I think.
discursive, exogenous, machinations, purportedly, sumptuous, congruity, cantankerous, incongruous, festoon, hessian, ratiocinative, stratigraphic and 2046 more...
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Perponyms
List of words referent to persons who commit specific crimes, or are suspected of committing those crimes, beginning with arsonist and safecracker.
Check out reesetee's nice Bad Guys l...arsonist, safecracker, murderer, rapist, getaway man, jewel thief, accomplice, drug dealer, carjacker, gunrunner, industrial spy, human trafficker and 216 more...
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Unsavory characters
absconder, aretaloger, arriviste, avaunter, bamboozler, bandit, banger, barbarian, barmecide, barrator, beldam, blatherskite and 190 more...
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scoundrels and bastards
already several of these lists, but I wanted my own
varlet, scoundrel, slubberdegullion, bastard, hooligan, boor, churl, thug, cad, ne'er-do-well, miscreant, minx and 85 more...
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bad guys
black hat, thug, thugz, highwayman, brigand, pirate, corsair, raider, viking, visigoth, vandal, gangster and 46 more...
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Thief Words
Words that deal with stealing and thievery!
steal, plunder, theif, robber, rob, take, kidnap, stole, take ownership, snatch, grab, hide and 19 more...
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6691 more...
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gre2
aberrant, aberration, aboveboard, abrasive, abstemious, acme, admonish, affable, affluent, alacrity, allegory, alleviate and 1827 more...
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the first list
an immense, grandiloquent list that loads like a thousand years sentence in stone. new words are in the other lists.
ridiculous, brummagem, predicament, sanctimonious, vapid, eschew, admonish, auspicious, capitulation, enumerate, lachrymose, tenet and 1648 more...
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Unsavoury Types
insults, epithets, etc.
drotchel, drossel, drazel, flutch, lollard, scobberlotcher, ragabash, faineant, cad, buffoon, martinet, tosspot and 116 more...
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Quaintnesses
For those who wish no words were ever forgotten
opprobrium, tedium, encomium, odium, ire, enmity, beguile, wile, brazen, popinjay, squit, hoity-toity and 1161 more...
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A Swell Mob
Kinds of thieves.
thief, sneak thief, burglar, cat burglar, picklock, puggard, robber, grave robber, piller, porch climber, prowler, larcenist and 133 more...
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Malachi_Constant's Words
triumverate, pandemic, parsnip, delineate, zamboni, parka, laser, swoop, malevolent, benevolent, fracas, tipsy and 372 more...
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wunderkammer's Words
smarmy, bubkes, elucidate, togs, aeolian, carp, kibosh, bosky, ramshackle, mange, harpy, effervesce and 163 more...
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azd's Words
adamantine, abatial, ablate, ablative, abrogate, accretive, acromegaly, acrostic, actinism, actinic, acuity, adduce and 968 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for brigand.
madmouth also see brigandry Apr 11, 2009