Brigandries

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An act of banditry, involving robbery or pillaging, typically carried out by a group of armed individuals in a lawless manner
2. Acts of violence or plunder conducted by highwaymen or criminals who disrupt societal order
3. The practices or behaviors associated with robbers or brigands, often characterized by lawlessness and violence in pursuit of personal gain

Etymology: "Brigandries" is the plural of "brigandry," which is itself a noun formed from "brigand" with the suffix "-ry." The suffix, from Old French "-erie," turns a person or type of person into the practices, conduct, or collective activity associated with them, as in "knavery" from "knave" or "slavery" from "slave." So "brigandry" names the robbing and plundering that brigands engage in, and the plural "brigandries" refers to particular acts or instances of such conduct. The base word "brigand" is the older of the two and is the one that carries the core sense of an outlaw who lives by plunder. Adding "-ry" shifts the emphasis from the person to the behavior, which is why the word reads more like a description of a pattern of lawless activity than of an individual robber.