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

He was charged with assault as a hate crime, reckless endangerment and harassment, according to the report. —Adam Sabes, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2025

Martinez's family had asked prosecutors to charge McEuen with a hate crime, claiming that there had been ongoing issues with McEuen since Martinez moved to the area years ago, CBS News previously reported. —Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025

Officers arrested the 37-year-old Fairfield man and booked him into jail on felony counts of assault, child endangerment and hate crime, according to police. —Daniella Segura, Sacbee.com, 24 Oct. 2025

The offense falls under Brazil’s hate crime law, which in 2019 expanded to include homophobia and transphobia, and threatens prison time for the convicted. —Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 24 Oct. 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