buccaneer
[ buhk-uh-neer ]
/ ˌbʌk əˈnɪər /
noun
any of the piratical adventurers who raided Spanish colonies and ships along the American coast in the second half of the 17th century.
any pirate.
Origin of buccaneer
1655–65; < French
boucanier, literally, barbecuer, equivalent to
boucan barbecue (< Tupi, variant of
mukém) +
-ier
-eer
OTHER WORDS FROM buccaneer
buc·ca·neer·ish, adjectiveWords nearby buccaneer
buccal,
buccal artery,
buccal cavity,
buccal gland,
buccal nerve,
buccaneer,
buccaro,
bucchero,
buccinator,
bucco-,
buccogingival
Example sentences from the Web for buccaneer
British Dictionary definitions for buccaneer
buccaneer
/ (ˌbʌkəˈnɪə) /
noun
a pirate, esp one who preyed on the Spanish colonies and shipping in America and the Caribbean in the 17th and 18th centuries
verb (intr)
to be or act like a buccaneer
Word Origin for buccaneer
C17: from French
boucanier, from
boucaner to smoke meat, from Old French
boucan frame for smoking meat, of Tupian origin; originally applied to French and English hunters of wild oxen in the Caribbean