highway robbery
The act of robbing a traveler on a public roadThe act of robbing a traveler on a public road.
» Rent is highway robbery.
Meaning
2 senses(countable, historical, uncountable)The act of robbing a traveler on a public road.
Straßenraub, Wegelagerei, Straßenräuberei
грабёж среди́ бела́ дняgrabjóž sredí belá dnja
robbery of travellers on or near a public road
(idiomatic, uncountable, usually)Excessive or exorbitant prices.
They think they can charge $400 for a shirt? That's highway robbery.
an exorbitant price
Examples
3 sentencesRent is highway robbery.
That's highway robbery.
ruЭто же откровенный грабёж. — marafon
That's highway robbery!
ruЭто же грабёж средь бела дня! — marafon
deDas ist Straßenraub! — brauchinet
Translations
4 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
Compare Old English weġrēaf (“highway robbery”, literally “road-theft”).Compare Old English weġrēaf (“highway robbery”, literally “road-theft”).
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: highway robberiesSynonyms
4 synonymsWord family
1 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable