hate crime

noun

: any of various crimes (such as assault or defacement of property) when motivated by hostility to the victim as a member of a group (such as one based on race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability)

Examples of hate crime in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Supervisor Hahn's Office called on officers to investigate the situation as a hate crime. —Lesley Marin, CBS News, 15 Jan. 2026

Weeks later, Alexandria police announced a new hate crime and bias-incident policy designed to formalize how those cases are handled. —Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026

These and other recent harrowing instances of political violence prompted Assemblymember Laurie Davies, R-Laguna Niguel, to file a bill last week that would add political affiliation to the list of classifications needed to classify a hate crime in California. —Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 12 Jan. 2026

Authorities have not said whether the incident constitutes a hate crime, but Jackson Mayor John Horhn framed it as an attack on the Jewish faith and religious freedom. —David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 11 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1960, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hate crime

• aforetime
• allozyme
• anytime
• christmastime
• cybercrime
• dinnertime
• guggenheim
• isozyme
• lysozyme
• maritime
• mesenchyme
• overtime

Kids Definition

hate crime

noun

plural hate crimes

: any of various crimes (as assault) when motivated by hostility to the victim based on social characteristics (as color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, or national origin)

Legal Definition

hate crime

noun

: a crime that violates the victim's civil rights and that is motivated by hostility to the victim's race, religion, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender