villain

play

noun vil·lain \ ˈvi-lən \

Definition of villain

1 :a character in a story or play who opposes the hero

2 :a deliberate scoundrel or criminal

3 :one blamed for a particular evil or difficulty

automation as the villain in job … displacement
—M. H. Goldberg

4 :villein

5 :an uncouth person :boor

See villain defined for English-language learners

See villain defined for kids

Examples of villain in a Sentence

He plays the villain in most of his movies.
She describes her first husband as a villain who treated her terribly.
Don't try to make me the villain. It's your own fault that you're having these problems.

Recent Examples of villain from the Web

Reeves did not elaborate on a potential villain for the film.

— yohana desta, HWD, "The Long-Promised Batman Movie Is Moving Forward Without Ben Affleck’s Script," 13 July 2017
Instead of focusing on his school projects and friends, Parker tracks down a group of thieves led by the villain Vulture, played by Michael Keaton, and gets in over his head.

— anousha sakoui, Bloomberg.com, "Revived ‘Spider-Man’ Gives Sony Much-Needed Win in Debut," 9 July 2017
After keeping Uber A's identity secret for two years—from both fans and her very own costars—Troian Bellisario (Spencer, Alex) opens up about being the show's infamous, albeit anonymous, villain.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Pretty Little Liars' Uber A Opens Up About Revealing Her Identity," 28 June 2017
My favorite villain was The Riddler played by Frank Gorshin.

— philip potempa, Post-Tribune, "Dunes Summer Theatre gets new life; reader defends 'Catwoman'," 27 June 2017
Nyqvist had a wide range as an actor, belonging to the Royal Dramatic Theater in Sweden and playing everything from villains to leading men in romantic comedies.

— maureen lee lenker, EW.com, "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," 27 June 2017
His campaign routinely criticized Goldman Sachs and its ties to Hillary Clinton, even using it as a villain in a political ad that included video of the bank’s chairman and CEO. _

— jim drinkard, The Seattle Times, "AP FACT CHECK: Trump team lacks a straight story on Russia," 26 June 2017
In that book, Harry keeps on thinking that Snape and Draco are villains.

— cecilia tan, Ars Technica, "Coming out as a Slytherin," 25 June 2017
His campaign routinely criticized Goldman Sachs and its ties to Hillary Clinton, even using it as a villain in a political ad that included video of the bank's chairman and CEO.

— jim drinkard and calvin woodward, chicagotribune.com, "Fact check: Trump's missions unaccomplished despite his claims," 24 June 2017

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