barbary
/ˈbɑː(ɹ)bəɹi/
barbary adjective: barbarian; non-Christian.
Adjective
barbary
- barbarian; non-Christian
Proper noun capitalized: Barbary
Barbary
- The Mediterranean coastal areas of North Africa that were used as a base by pirates in the 16th to 19th centuries.
- [King of] Moro[cco]. Ye Moores and valiant men of Barbary,
How can ye ſuffer theſe indignities?c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC... - Have all his ventures fail'd? What! not one hit?
From Tripolis, from Mexico, and England;
From Lisbon, Barbary, and India?c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
- [King of] Moro[cco]. Ye Moores and valiant men of Barbary,
Forms of barbary
| alternative form (obsolete) | Barbarie |
|---|
Origin of barbary
From Middle English barbarye (“barbarian, non-Christian”), from Old French [Term?] and Medieval Latin [Term?].
From Berber + -y, influenced by barbary (“barbarian, non-Christian”). See also Arabic بَرْبَرِيّ (barbariyy, “Berber”).
Words formed from barbary
Phrases with barbary
Questions about barbary
- What does barbary mean?
- Barbary means barbarian; non-Christian.
- What part of speech is barbary?
- Barbary can be an adjective or a proper noun.
- How do you pronounce barbary?
- Barbary is pronounced /ˈbɑː(ɹ)bəɹi/.
Words near barbary in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: barbary (page history and authors); Barbary (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “barbary.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/barbary. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.