: pirate
especially
: a privateer of the Barbary Coast
Examples of corsair in a Sentence
no one knows the fate of the corsair's treasure-filled ship
Recent Examples on the Web
Freed from a Mediterranean Sea crowded with Ottoman fleets and North African corsairs, the Atlantic upstarts unleashed themselves on the world’s oceans.
—
Jeremy Adelman, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2015
But the stealthy corsair, evading her pursuer, slipped to safety in Tripoli’s shallow harbor—and then, suddenly, disaster struck the Philadelphia.
—Mark G. Spencer, WSJ, 31 Jan. 2023
Queen of the seas, Britain seemed to countenance the pirating activities of the North African corsairs.
—Thomas Wendel, National Review, 4 July 2019
From ancient Norse princess Alfhild to Sayyida al-Hurra of the Barbary corsairs, these women sailed beside–and sometimes in command of–male pirates.
—Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, 12 Apr. 2017
Jeremy Adelman, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2015
But the stealthy corsair, evading her pursuer, slipped to safety in Tripoli’s shallow harbor—and then, suddenly, disaster struck the Philadelphia.
—Mark G. Spencer, WSJ, 31 Jan. 2023
Queen of the seas, Britain seemed to countenance the pirating activities of the North African corsairs.
—Thomas Wendel, National Review, 4 July 2019
From ancient Norse princess Alfhild to Sayyida al-Hurra of the Barbary corsairs, these women sailed beside–and sometimes in command of–male pirates.
—Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, 12 Apr. 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'corsair.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near corsair
Cite this Entry
“Corsair.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/corsair. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.
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corsair
noun
cor·sair
ˈkȯr-ˌsa(ə)r 
-ˌse(ə)r
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