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

The incident remains under active investigation by SJPD’s assaults unit as a possible hate crime, authorities said. —Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026

Police in San Jose have launched a hate crime investigation following an altercation at the Santana Row over the weekend. —Tim Fang, CBS News, 10 Mar. 2026

Bias against a religion accounted for nearly half of the hate crimes in 2025, officials said. —Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026

Cases of antisemitism and hate crimes towards Jewish Americans have also surged in recent years. —Tiago Ventura, Time, 6 Mar. 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