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Definitions

criminal

[krim-uh-nl] / ˈkrɪm ə nl /
ADJECTIVE
lawless, felonious
Synonyms
STRONGEST
corrupt deplorable illegal illegitimate illicit scandalous senseless unlawful vicious
STRONG
bent heavy racket wildcat wrong
WEAK
caught crooked culpable dirty hung up indictable iniquitous nefarious off base out of line peccant shady smoking gun unrighteous villainous wicked
Antonyms
STRONGEST
authorized blessed ethical good kind lawful legal legitimate moral noble proper pure right uncorrupt
WEAK
correct righteous
NOUN
person who breaks the law
Synonyms
STRONGEST
convict crook culprit felon fugitive gangster hoodlum hooligan lawbreaker mobster offender thug
STRONG
bad guy bad person baddie baddy blackmailer con delinquent desperado deuce evildoer guerrilla heavy hood hustler jailbird malefactor mug muscle outlaw racketeer repeater scofflaw sinner transgressor trespasser wrongdoer yardbird
WEAK
bad actor black marketeer ex-con inside person slippery eel
Antonyms
STRONGEST
police
WEAK
law

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Chesa Boudin is the former district attorney of San Francisco and the executive director of the Criminal Law & Justice Center at UC Berkeley School of Law.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026

He’s the International Criminal Court prosecutor who requested arrest warrants for Israel’s leaders in 2024, shortly after learning he had been accused of sexual assault.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

Criminal defendants have a constitutional right to represent themselves.

From Slate • Apr. 20, 2026

It took the results to the Criminal Cases Review Commission which finally agreed to do some further work and arranged a search of the National DNA Database in 2022 - which identified Quinn.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

One was a representative of the Utah Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Vocabulary lists containing criminal

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Crime and Punishment

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