pirate

/ˈpaɪrət/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈpaɪrət/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈpī-rət/ (ame, mw) · /ˈpaɪ.rət/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈpaɪr.ət/ (ame, ipa)

pirate — noun

  • piratesingular
  • piratesplural

1. an armed robber who travels by ship across the sea, attacking other ships or coa

1.名詞B1
釋義

an armed robber who travels by ship across the sea, attacking other ships or coastal towns to steal money, cargo, or people.

例句

In 1718, a pirate named Blackbeard captured a French slave ship near the Caribbean.

historical reference: a pirate named [Name]

Somali pirates seized the cargo ship and held the crew for ransom for three months.

collocation: pirates + seize/hold for ransom

同義詞
  • buccaneer

    historical Caribbean pirate, often romanticised

  • corsair

    older or literary; especially a Mediterranean pirate

  • raider

    broader: any attacker who steals; not necessarily at sea

文法句型

a pirate + verb

a band/crew of pirates

用法筆記

Often appears with adjectives that locate the pirate in time or place (Caribbean pirates, Somali pirates, modern pirates) and with verbs of violent taking (attack, board, seize, raid, plunder).

常見錯誤

❌A pirate stole my bag on the bus.
✅A thief stole my bag on the bus.
💡a pirate operates at sea, not on land transport.

2. someone who makes copies of films, music, software, or books without paying the

2.名詞B2
釋義

someone who makes copies of films, music, software, or books without paying the owner of the rights, and then shares or sells those copies.

例句

Software pirates in the 1990s sold cheap copies of Microsoft Office on burned CDs.

compound: software/music/video pirate

Movie studios lose billions every year to pirates who upload films online before release.

collocation: pirates + upload/share/distribute

同義詞
  • bootlegger

    informal; especially someone who sells unofficial copies of music or films

  • counterfeiter

    broader: makes fake versions of any product, not only media

文法句型

software/music/video pirate

用法筆記

Frequently used as a modifier (software pirate, music pirate) or with the medium as the object of the implied copying. Distinguish from sense 1: the sea-robber sense never appears in compounds about media.

常見錯誤

❌My friend is a pirate because he downloaded one song for free.
✅My friend downloaded one song illegally.
💡'pirate' usually describes someone who copies and distributes on a larger scale, not a one-time downloader.

3. a station broadcasting radio or TV programmes without any government licence, of

3.名詞C1
釋義

a station broadcasting radio or TV programmes without any government licence, often from a hidden flat, a tall building, or a ship anchored offshore.

例句

In the 1960s, a pirate broadcast pop music to British teenagers from a ship in the North Sea.

historical: 1960s UK pirate radio on ships

The police shut down a pirate that had been playing reggae from a flat in east London.

collocation: shut down / raid + a pirate (station)

同義詞
反義詞

文法句型

pirate radio/TV station

用法筆記

Most often appears as a modifier in 'pirate radio' or 'pirate station'; the bare noun for a station is less common and usually clear from context (broadcasting, radio, frequency).

常見錯誤

❌I listened to a pirate yesterday.
✅I listened to a pirate station yesterday.
💡without 'radio' or 'station', listeners will read 'pirate' as the sea-robber sense.

pirate — verb