noun
Meaning 1
A French privateer, especially from the port of Saint-Malo.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
corsair
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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/kɔːɹsɛəɹ/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: K AO1 R S EH0 R Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
A privateer or pirate in general.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: buccaneer, corsair, freebooter, picaroon, pirate, raider, reaver, sea rat, sea-robber, sea rover
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
The ship of privateers or pirates, especially of French nationality.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
A nocturnal assassin bug of the genus Rasahus, found in the southern USA.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
A Californian market fish (Sebastes rosaceus).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 6
a swift pirate ship (often operating with official sanction)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: pirate, pirate ship
noun
Meaning 7
a pirate along the Barbary Coast
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Barbary pirate
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: pirate, buccaneer, sea robber, sea rover
Narrower terms: Barbarossa, Khayr ad-Din
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Latin cursus Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -ārius Medieval Latin cursāriusder. Italian corsarobor. French corsairebor. English corsair Borrowed from French corsaire, from Medieval Latin cursārius (“pirate”), from Latin cursus (“course, a running; plunder, hostile inroad”). Doublet of courser and hussar.
Across languages
Translations
35 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: пират (pirat) — privateersman or pirate
- Bulgarian: корсар (korsar) — privateersman or pirate
- Catalan: corsari — privateersman or pirate
- Catalan: corsària — privateersman or pirate
- Czech: korzár — privateersman or pirate
- Estonian: piraat — privateersman or pirate
- Estonian: mereröövel — privateersman or pirate
- Estonian: kaaper — privateersman or pirate
- Estonian: korsaar — privateersman or pirate
- French: pirate — privateersman or pirate
- French: corsaire — privateersman or pirate
- German: Korsar — privateersman or pirate
- Hungarian: privatér — privateersman or pirate
- Ido: korsaro — privateersman or pirate
- Italian: corsaro — privateersman or pirate
- Italian: pirata — privateersman or pirate
- Italian: filibustiere — privateersman or pirate
- Italian: bucaniere — privateersman or pirate
- Japanese: コルセア (korusea) — privateersman or pirate
- Polish: korsarz — privateersman or pirate
- Portuguese: corsário — privateersman or pirate
- Russian: корса́р (korsár) — privateersman or pirate
- Russian: пира́т (pirát) — privateersman or pirate
- Spanish: corsario — privateersman or pirate
- Swedish: korsar — privateersman or pirate
- Ottoman Turkish: قرصان (korsan) — privateersman or pirate
- Ottoman Turkish: ملك (melik) — privateersman or pirate
- French: corsaire — pirate ship or privateer
- Hungarian: korzár — pirate ship or privateer
- Ido: korsaronavo — pirate ship or privateer
- Japanese: 海賊(船)(かいぞく(せん) — pirate ship or privateer
- Japanese: kaizoku) (sen) — pirate ship or privateer
- Portuguese: corsário — pirate ship or privateer
- Russian: капер (kaper) — pirate ship or privateer
- Spanish: buque corsario — pirate ship or privateer
Real reading context