desperado
Wild West fugitive
A desperado is a reckless outlaw or bandit, especially one from the American Old West or the lawless frontiers of the Spanish-speaking world.
The word carries a romantic, slightly antiquated flavor—evoking wanted posters, dusty saloons, and men with nothing left to lose: The sheriff warned that desperados had been spotted near the canyon.
It suggests someone dangerous precisely because they're desperate.
Armed roadside thief
- fugitiveOne fleeing authorities
- highwaymanMounted thief targeting travelers
- robberOne who steals by force
- brigandArmed robber, often rural
rustler · raider · gunslinger · outcast · wanted · bounty · manhunt · hideout
Edge of settlement
- cowboyMounted cattle herder
- saloonDrinking establishment, often frontier
- sheriffCounty's chief officer
- posseArmed group pursuing fugitives
prairie · six-shooter · stagecoach · mustang · territory · gunfight · holster · spur
Narrative poem or song
- troubadourMedieval Provençal lyric poet
- antiheroMorally ambiguous main character
- lonesomeSad from isolation
- tragicCausing great sorrow
wanderer · heartbroken · forlorn · exile · brooding · misunderstood · Eagles · song
Defiance of established power
- defianceOpen resistance to authority
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
- unyieldingRefusing to give way
- insubordinationDefying workplace authority
nonconformity · dissent · renegade · antiauthority · unbroken · unbowed · untamed · insurgent
Reckless risk-taker
- impulsiveActing without deliberation
- hotheadedEasily provoked to anger
- rashHeedless or skin irritation
- heedlessCareless of consequences
audacious · brazen · impetuous · foolhardy · headstrong · incautious · overbold · reckless
bandit
Armed roadside thief
- fugitiveOne fleeing authorities
- highwaymanMounted thief targeting travelers
- robberOne who steals by force
brigand · rustler · raider · gunslinger · outcast · wanted · bounty · manhunt · hideout · lawless
frontier
Edge of settlement
- cowboyMounted cattle herder
- saloonDrinking establishment, often frontier
- sheriffCounty's chief officer
posse · prairie · six-shooter · stagecoach · mustang · territory · gunfight · holster · spur · shootout
ballad
Narrative poem or song
- troubadourMedieval Provençal lyric poet
- antiheroMorally ambiguous main character
- lonesomeSad from isolation
tragic · wanderer · heartbroken · forlorn · exile · brooding · misunderstood · Eagles · song · lovelorn
rebellion
Defiance of established power
- defianceOpen resistance to authority
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
- unyieldingRefusing to give way
insubordination · nonconformity · dissent · renegade · antiauthority · unbroken · unbowed · untamed · insurgent · revolutionary
daredevil
Reckless risk-taker
- impulsiveActing without deliberation
- hotheadedEasily provoked to anger
- rashHeedless or skin irritation
heedless · audacious · brazen · impetuous · foolhardy · headstrong · incautious · overbold · reckless · all-or-nothing
solitary
Existing alone, apart
- recluseOne choosing isolation
- isolationComplete separation from others
- withdrawnEmotionally distant, disengaged
aloof · drifter · wanderer · rootless · outcast · estranged · nomad · vagrant · misfit · outsider
menacing
Conveying threat or danger
ruthless · merciless · cutthroat · hostile · fierce · brutal · intimidating · unpredictable · volatile · cornered
- chesscheck, pawns, knights, rooks, pawn
- Old Westcowboy, cowboys, cowgirl, sheriff, sheriffs
- Westernscowboys, western, outlaws, sheriffs, western novels
- Wild Westcowboy, howdy, sheriff, giddyup, lawmen
- gunslingersgunslinger, gunfighter, gunman, quickdraw, fast draw
- Outlawsoutlaw, bandit, highwayman, robber, rustler
desperadolawman
Enforcement officer
sheriff · marshal · deputy · peace officer · constable
desperadosolid citizen
conformist · pillar of the community · respectable · straight arrow · bourgeois
desperate, desperately, desperation, desperadoes, desperados