unsub

noun

un·​sub ˈən-ˌsəb 

plural unsubs

US law enforcement, informal

: the unknown perpetrator of a crime

Not one but two murderous unsubs are on the loose …

—TV Guide

Rhyme remembered the thousands of times he'd run crime scenes. Sometimes a miracle would happen. He'd be looking around and somehow ideas about the unsub would come to him. He couldn't explain how.

—Jeffery Deaver

Examples of unsub in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Will there be another unsub that gives the BAU a run for their money like Voit did? — Lynette Rice, Deadline, 10 July 2025

The 40-second clip depicted the BAU agents in a number of different scenarios and suggested Prentiss died after the events with the unsub Ian Doyle in season 6. — Adrianna Freedman, Good Housekeeping, 1 Apr. 2023

The trauma of her shooting and the pressure of her job leads to the BAU agent shooting an unsub. — Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 13 Jan. 2023

The real masterstroke is casting Zach Gilford as the prime unsub, the spiritual leader of a nationwide network of murderous acolytes. — Joshua Alston, Variety, 21 Nov. 2022

The 10-episode series from original series writer and producer Erica Messer will have a COVID-19 pandemic twist this time around as the criminal profilers track down a new unsub, who has built a network of serial killers during quarantine. — Jessica Wang, EW.com, 13 Sep. 2022

Word History

Etymology

unknown (or unidentified) subject

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unsub

• nightclub
• bub
• club
• cub
• dub
• grub
• hub
• nub
• pub
• rub
• scrub
• shrub