JOLLY ROGER


Meaning of JOLLY ROGER in English

-ˈräjə(r) noun

Usage: usually capitalized J&R

Etymology: jolly (I) + Roger (the name)

: a flag in any of various color combinations bearing one or more emblems of mortality (as a skeleton, a skull and crossbones, or an hourglass) and raised on a pirate ship of the 17th and 18th centuries as a signal that quarter would be given if no resistance were offered but now often believed to have been used by pirates as their ensign ; specifically : a black flag bearing a white skull and crossbones — compare black flag

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.