English Explanatory Dictionary

criminal

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Against the law; forbidden by law.
  2. Guilty of breaking the law.
  3. Of or relating to crime or penal law.
  4. Abhorrent or very undesirable.
noun
  1. A person who is guilty of a crime, notably breaking the law.

Pronunciation

/ˈkɹɪm.ɪ.nəl/ en-us-criminal.ogg /ˈkɹɪm.ə.nəl/

Word forms

criminal more criminal most criminal criminals

Etymology

From Middle English cryminal, borrowed from Anglo-Norman criminal, from Late Latin criminalis, from Latin crimen (“crime”).

Synonyms

crimeful delictuous illegal illicit criminal illegitimate lawbreaking nonlawful outlawed unlawful wrongful at fault culpable blameworthy censurable guilty nocent reprehensible to blame detestable repugnant lawbreaker offender perpetrator crook committer culprit delinquent desperado double-dealer felon hoodlum lowlife malefactor malfeasant outlaw public enemy scofflaw undesirable

Related words

absconder con convict fugitive prisoner villain troublemaker jerk

Derived words

age of criminal responsibility anticriminal archcriminal certificate of no criminal conviction criminal code criminal conversation criminaldom criminalese criminaless criminalisation criminalise criminalish criminalism criminalist criminalistic criminalistics criminality criminalization criminalize criminal law criminal lawyer criminally criminal negligence criminalness criminal offence criminal offense criminaloid criminal procedure criminal prosecution criminal prosecutor criminal psychologist criminal psychology criminal record criminal science criminal scientist criminal tool criminal tribe criminigger criminogenic criminology crimmigrant crimmigration District of Criminals medicocriminal noncriminal pseudocriminal quasicriminal semicriminal subcriminal supercriminal uncriminal arch-criminal criminal-like cybercriminal e-criminal career criminal climate criminal criminal against humanity November criminal petty criminal
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