as in criminals
a person who has committed a crime
legislation that mandates lengthy prison sentences for chronic lawbreakers
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Recent Examples of lawbreakers
Pinecrest police ends the Facebook post warning other neighbors in the area to stay vigilant, and for potential lawbreakers to stay far away.
—
Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 31 Mar. 2026
In similar manner, the true lawbreakers when innocent folks were brought to our shores between 1808 and 1865 were not the victims themselves.
—Walter E Block, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, municipal courts around the state are adjusting to a new normal after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in December that cities cannot punish lawbreakers beyond what state statute would allow for the same offenses.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Martha Cornelison agreed the border with Mexico needed to be secured and that serious lawbreakers should be deported.
—Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2026
As politicians in both parties warned that lawbreakers in the crowd would pay, Webster suppressed a pang of fear.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 31 Mar. 2026
In similar manner, the true lawbreakers when innocent folks were brought to our shores between 1808 and 1865 were not the victims themselves.
—Walter E Block, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, municipal courts around the state are adjusting to a new normal after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in December that cities cannot punish lawbreakers beyond what state statute would allow for the same offenses.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Martha Cornelison agreed the border with Mexico needed to be secured and that serious lawbreakers should be deported.
—Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2026
As politicians in both parties warned that lawbreakers in the crowd would pay, Webster suppressed a pang of fear.
—Jamie Thompson, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lawbreakers
Noun
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Göring, played by Russell Crowe, is the troubling centerpiece of James Vanderbilt’s ambitious film devoted to the trial of the major Nazi war criminals at Nuremberg in 1945–1946.—
Alice Kaplan,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
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Also included is a 13% increase in funding for the Department of Justice to focus on violent criminals and a $481 million increase in funding to enhance aviation safety and support an air traffic controller hiring surge.—
LISA MASCARO,
Arkansas Online,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Holmes qualified for the reduced term under a 2023 rule change allowing first-time offenders to do less time for some non-violent crimes, according to an order issued Thursday by the federal judge who sentenced her in 2022 for defrauding investors in her blood-testing startup.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
27 Mar. 2026
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And many Democrats see it as an effort to curb more liberal prosecutors who have embraced restorative justice policies, including steering nonviolent offenders away from prison sentences or taking more lax approaches to drug offenses.—
Riley Bunch,
AJC.com,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Lawbreakers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lawbreakers. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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