1. a robber who attacks travelers on roads, especially on horseback
Usage: historical

Examples

• The highwayman stopped the stagecoach and demanded all the passengers’ valuables.
• Dick Turpin was a famous English highwayman in the 18th century.
• Travelers feared encountering a highwayman on the lonely country roads.
• The poem tells the story of a dashing highwayman who fell in love with an innkeeper’s daughter.
• Highway patrols were established to protect merchants from highwaymen.
• The masked highwayman escaped into the forest after robbing the carriage.