bad guy

noun

|Updated on: 13 Aug 2018

Definition of bad guy

informal

1 : the villain in a story : baddie

played the bad guy in the movie

2 : someone who is likened to the villain in a story: such as

a : a criminal

Designed to keep guns out of the hands of bad guys and children …
—Popular Science

b : a military enemy

… a decision that owes more to parochial conflicts within the Armed Forces than to doing the best job of surveilling bad guys.
—Stuart F. Brown

c : someone who deserves to be blamed or criticized for causing a bad situation

Meanwhile, it's the environmentalists who are now portrayed as the bad guys, hiring lots of lawyers, consorting with congressmen …
—Eric Alterman

d : a person who treats other people harshly or strictly : a person who says or does unpopular things

Parenting isn't just about having beautiful kids and being busy. It's about dealing with problems, and your success as a parent depends on your willingness to be the bad guy. If you aren't willing to be the bad guy, you shouldn't be a parent.
—Roy Bragg

Recent Examples of bad guy from the Web

There's a reason the bad guys are burning down the building, but it's explained away in about 30 seconds toward the end and doesn't matter anyway.

— bill goodykoontz, azcentral, "'Skyscraper:' Big, dumb and kind of fun, thanks to Dwayne Johnson and Neve Campbell," 12 July 2018
In the 118-page deposition obtained by the Free Press, Furman claims that Hayse is the bad guy and accuses him of being a racist police chief who had it out for him, directed officers to ticket only minorities and deserved to be fired.

— tresa baldas, Detroit Free Press, "Lawsuit: Melvindale uses abusive cop to make money off towing scam," 21 June 2018
Because McCain is the bad guy in this play -- and Trump is the good guy.

— chris cillizza, CNN, "The Trump administration is trying to turn the McCain death joke into a 'leak' scandal," 14 May 2018
Here’s who died in Avengers: Infinity War Loki (Tom Hiddleston) in Marvel Studios' AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR Marvel Studios Loki: Turns out Loki (Tom Hiddleston) wasn’t such a bad guy after all.

— eliana dockterman, Time, "A Complete List of Who Lives and Dies in Avengers: Infinity War," 27 Apr. 2018
Maybe Russia was involved, but that doesn’t mean Putin is a bad guy.

— benjamin hart, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Attacks Putin by Name for First Time," 8 Apr. 2018
Place on the middle rack of a 3,000-foot Hong Kong high-rise that’s on fire, courtesy of a bad guy with an indeterminate foreign accent and sprinkle generously with cliches.

— michael o’sullivan, kansascity, "In ‘Skyscraper,’ Dwayne Johnson’s charisma elevates a dumb movie," 12 July 2018
Lilly plays Hope van Dyne: a brilliant scientist who uses a similar size-morphing suit to stomp through bad guys in a quest to rescue her mother — played by Michelle Pfeiffer — who is trapped in the mysterious quantum realm.

— eli wolfe, SFChronicle.com, "‘Ant-Man’ Paul Rudd talks tiny insects and Skywalker Ranch," 2 July 2018
Traditionally in westerns, the indigenous people are just the bad guys.

— refinery29.com, "Finally, A Western That's Not About A Dude & His Horse," 26 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bad guy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.