as in illegal
contrary to or forbidden by law
people should know with certainty that criminal behavior will be punished
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in offender
a person who has committed a crime
car thieves, pickpockets, burglars, and other criminals
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of criminal
Richard Hall, Time, 14 Sep. 2025
Pulte submitted a criminal referral to the Justice Department, which has opened an investigation.
—Alan Suderman, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2025
Amy Reichert, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Sep. 2025
Evidence produced by the ISIS Prisons Museum has already been used in a German court to convict war criminals.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminal
Adjective
What investigators conclude about Robinson’s motivations may have far-reaching consequences beyond his own criminal case.
—Richard Hall, Time, 14 Sep. 2025
Pulte submitted a criminal referral to the Justice Department, which has opened an investigation.
—Alan Suderman, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2025
Noun
Those criminals aren’t hypothetical.
—Amy Reichert, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Sep. 2025
Evidence produced by the ISIS Prisons Museum has already been used in a German court to convict war criminals.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for criminal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for criminal
Adjective
-
Louisville police say anything that goes into the air or explodes is illegal for average citizens.—
James Bruggers,
The Courier-Journal,
5 July 2017
-
Official fireworks shows took place over the city, and illegal pyrotechnics lit up the sky everywhere in between.—
Lisa Beebe,
Los Angeles Magazine,
5 July 2017
Noun
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Just this morning, DHS took violent offenders off the streets with arrests for assault, DUI, and felony stalking.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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Instead of a sense of outrage leading to a search for a better solution for repeat violent offenders, her death generated calls for collective retribution and vigilante justice.—
Zeynep Tufekci,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
In November, jurors convicted Martinez of unlawful compensation and a related conspiracy charge.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
15 Sep. 2025
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The world’s highest court, the International Court of Justice, has ruled that there is a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza, and that Israel’s occupation and apartheid against Palestinians are unlawful.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
For two decades, the regimes of Hugo Chávez and Maduro have tied the state to illicit economies —granting officers, loyalists, and gangs access to oil, smuggling routes and drug profits.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
20 Sep. 2025
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In a lawsuit filed in California District Court on Thursday, the FTC accuses the companies of multiple forms of illicit behavior.—
Rob Wile,
NBC news,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Finley faces charges of murder and felonious assault.—
David Ferrara,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
9 Sep. 2025
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One man involved is both considered a victim of felonious assault and has been charged with disorderly conduct.—
Kevin Grasha,
The Enquirer,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Brown’s family brought a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city and reached a settlement in 2017.—
Susannah Cullinane,
CNN Money,
8 Sep. 2025
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For another, the Leonard situation involves a separate, non-Clippers company, Aspiration, that would be the wrongful payer; with Smith, the Timberwolves were the payer.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Criminal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/criminal. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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