mooncusser

English - English

Definition of mooncusser in English English dictionary

A land-based pirate who, on dark nights along dangerous coasts, would demolish any legitimate lighthouses or beacons, erect a decoy signal fire in a different, deliberately misleading location, and then, after having induced a shipwreck, subdue any survivors and plunder the wreckage for valuables

Related Terms

A mooncusser

wrecker

Synonyms

wrecker

Etymology

() based on the fact that the strategy would not work on a moonlit night, such that the would-be pirate cussed the moon