criminal

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Contents

English [edit]

Etymology [edit]

From Middle English, from Anglo-Norman criminal, from Late Latin criminalis, from Latin crimen (crime)

Pronunciation [edit]

  • (file)

Adjective [edit]

criminal (comparative more criminal, superlative most criminal)

  1. Being against the law; forbidden by law.
  2. Guilty of breaking the law.
  3. Of or relating to crime.
  4. (figuratively) Abhorrent or very undesirable, even if allowed by law.
    Printing such asinine opinions without rebuttal is criminal, even when not libel!
  5. Of or relating to crime control, notably penal law.
    His criminal record shows his resistance to all crime prevention and - repression.

Usage notes [edit]

  • Nouns to which "criminal" is often applied: law, justice, court, procedure, prosecution, intent, case, record, act, action, behavior, code, offence, liability, investigation, conduct, defense, trial, history, responsibility, lawyer, tribunal, appeal, process, background, mind, conspiracy, evidence, gang, organization, underworld, jurisprudence, offender, jury, police, past, group, punishment, attorney, violence, report, career, psychology.

Synonyms [edit]

Derived terms [edit]

Related terms [edit]

Translations [edit]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Noun [edit]

criminal (plural criminals)

  1. A person who is guilty of a crime, notably breaking the law.

Synonyms [edit]

Translations [edit]


Old French [edit]

Adjective [edit]

criminal m (feminine criminale)

  1. criminal; illegal; against the law

Declension [edit]


Spanish [edit]

Adjective [edit]

criminal m and f (plural criminales)

  1. criminal

Noun [edit]

criminal m and f (plural criminales)

  1. A criminal

Related terms [edit]