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 color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation)

Examples of hate crime in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Her family held press conferences and called for a hate crime investigation by law enforcement. —Jeff A. Chamer, Charlotte Observer, 29 May 2025

An Elgin man and a 16-year-old juvenile accused of attacking a lesbian woman at a Carpentersville McDonald’s, leaving her badly injured, have been indicted on a hate crime charge by a Kane County grand jury. —Courier-News, Chicago Tribune, 28 May 2025

The new office comes despite the existence of a similar office in his administration that was formed in 2019, also in response to a rise in antisemitic hate crime incidents. —Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 13 May 2025

Each hate crime charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. —Lexi Lonas Cochran, The Hill, 8 May 2025

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