robber baron

American  

noun

1. History/Historical. a noble who robbed travelers passing through his lands.

2. a ruthlessly powerful U.S. capitalist or industrialist of the late 19th century considered to have become wealthy by exploiting natural resources, corrupting legislators, or other unethical means.

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Etymology

Origin of robber baron

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

Government and private money are flowing in quantities that would make a Gilded Age robber baron blush.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 23, 2025

Indeed, skeptics sometimes associate geoengineering with supervillain behavior, like a famous episode of The Simpsons in which the robber baron Mr. Burns blocks the sun.

From Salon • Dec. 12, 2024

Robert A. Iger, who leads Disney, publicly pushed back against the striking workers, and found himself jeered on picket lines as a robber baron.

From New York Times • Aug. 27, 2023

As the revelations pile up, we learn that Bron is the film’s true villain: A rapacious, not-as-bright-as-he-seems robber baron whose unchecked ego and ambitions lead to his spectacular downfall.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 29, 2022

The robber baron, Sir Jacobus Kloon, swiped, — as Froissart has it, — the Esthonian gems, and under agreement to deliver them to you, I suppose, thought better of it and attempted to abscond.

From The Flaming Jewel by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)