privateer
(noun) a privately owned warship commissioned to prey on the commercial shipping or warships of an enemy nation
privateer, privateersman
(noun) an officer or crew member of a privateer
Source: WordNet® 3.1
privateer (plural privateers)
(historical) A privately owned warship that had official sanction to attack enemy ships and take possession of their cargo. [from 17th c.]
(historical) An officer or any other member of the crew of such a ship. [from 17th c.]
• [from 17th c.]
An advocate or beneficiary of privatization of a government service or activity.
(motor racing, chiefly North America) A private individual entrant into a race or competition who does not have the backing of a large, professional team. [from 20th c.]
privateer (third-person singular simple present privateers, present participle privateering, simple past and past participle privateered)
To function under official sanction permitting attacks on enemy shipping and seizing ship and cargo; to engage in government-sponsored piracy. [from 17th c.]
To advocate or benefit from privatization of government services.
Source: Wiktionary
Pri`va*teer" n. Etym: [From Private.]
1. An armed private vessel which bears the commission of the sovereign power to cruise against the enemy. See Letters of marque, under Marque.
2. The commander of a privateer. Kidd soon threw off the character of a privateer and became a pirate. Macaulay.
Pri`va*teer", v. i. [imp. & p. p. Privateered; p. pr. & vb. n. Privateering.]
Definition: To cruise in a privateer.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
7 June 2025
(noun) a unit of astronomical length based on the distance from Earth at which stellar parallax is 1 second of arc; equivalent to 3.262 light years
According to Guinness World Records, the most massive cup of coffee contained 22,739.14 liters and was created by AlcaldĂa Municipal de Chinchiná (Colombia) at Parque de BolĂvar, Chinchiná, Caldas, Colombia, on 15 June 2019. Fifty people worked for more than a month to build this giant cup. The drink prepared was Arabic coffee.
