plural villainies
1
: villainous conduct
also
: a villainous act
2
: the quality or state of being villainous : depravity
Examples of villainy in a Sentence
a story of villainy and betrayal
the gruesome villainies of war
Recent Examples on the Web
Cosby’s good guys do things that outpace the rankest villainy in the work of other crime writers.
—
Vulture Editors, Vulture, 8 July 2025
Lex is a tech billionaire very much in the Musk/Zuckerberg mode, but Hoult gives him sufficient ambiguity to blur the lines of his villainy between someone genuinely concerned about humankind in thrall to an alien and someone who just wants absolute power at any price.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2025
But that’s not all… Reality Distortion According to Vasko, cyber criminals behind this type of villainy may be thought of as AI buccaneers—digital pirates often paid to instigate corporate espionage and theft.
—Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 30 May 2025
Still, there’s great friction in this story line, because Bridger and Young’s dialogue is simultaneously so florid and pointed, and because the actors playing the Mormon baddies really gnaw on their villainy.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for villainy
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Vulture Editors, Vulture, 8 July 2025
Lex is a tech billionaire very much in the Musk/Zuckerberg mode, but Hoult gives him sufficient ambiguity to blur the lines of his villainy between someone genuinely concerned about humankind in thrall to an alien and someone who just wants absolute power at any price.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2025
But that’s not all… Reality Distortion According to Vasko, cyber criminals behind this type of villainy may be thought of as AI buccaneers—digital pirates often paid to instigate corporate espionage and theft.
—Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 30 May 2025
Still, there’s great friction in this story line, because Bridger and Young’s dialogue is simultaneously so florid and pointed, and because the actors playing the Mormon baddies really gnaw on their villainy.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for villainy
Cite this Entry
“Villainy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/villainy. Accessed 24 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
villainy
noun
vil·lainy
ˈvil-ə-nē 
plural villainies
: conduct or actions of or typical of a villain
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