gangbanger

noun

ˈgaŋ-ˌbaŋ-ər How to pronounce gangbanger (audio)
Definition of gangbangernext
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang the argument that the DEA needs to focus more on the kingpins of the drug trade and less on the gangbangers in the street

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gangbanger Wahhh’s career coincided with, and has benefited from, tattoos moving from society’s fringes (military vets, bikers, ex-convicts, gangbangers) into the mainstream and onto the bodies of school teachers, dentists, and maybe the person sitting next to you. — Rick Kogan, Chicago Tribune, 17 June 2026 Who signed off on gangbanger LaMar Cook being granted access to ship eight pounds of blow directly to Maura’s office suite in Springfield, as well as another 19 pounds of coke to a hotel on the UMass-Amherst campus? — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 29 Nov. 2025 Murdered within about six months of each other at the height of their fame in the 1990s, their deaths spawned conspiracy theories of hitmen, coverups and cops on gangbangers’ payrolls. — Veronica Bravo, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2025 The gangbangers allegedly smashed a victim's head open with a glass bottle of tequila, leaving him with severe lacerations to his face and nerve damage. — Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 10 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for gangbanger
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangbanger
  1. thug
  2. gangster
  3. criminal
  4. villain
  5. assassin
  6. bandit
Noun
  • The other was Albrecht Hohler, thirty, a Communist member of the paramilitary group the Red Front Fighters and well known locally as a particularly vicious thug—a petty criminal who had been released from jail only a few months earlier.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2026
  • These low-level thugs typically are not believed to be formally aligned with Iran.
    — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of thug
Noun
  • All those old Warner Brothers gangster movies were always playing on TV.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 29 Oct. 2026
  • The Capone associates lined up six members of Moran's gang, and a seventh unaffiliated man who apparently liked hanging out with gangsters, against the north wall of the garage.
    — Adam Harrington, CBS News, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of gangster
Noun
  • The trailers were recovered by police nearby, presumably after the criminals cut the locks to reveal they were each loaded with 20,000 pounds of sand.
    — Nick Indge, ArsTechnica, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Without changing state law, criminals can continue to be sentenced to death in California.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • Horowitz then brought up Skarsgard’s longtime interest in playing a villain in the James Bond franchise.
    — Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Much psychological research has focussed on the degradation of villains, but a symmetrical force works to elevate victims.
    — Paul Bloom, New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of villain
Noun
  • The explosion killed him and fourteen others in his vicinity, as well as the assassin, and injured another forty-three.
    — Sonia Gandhi, Vanity Fair, 10 Nov. 2026
  • Martin McDonagh’s latest comedy drama casts Malkovich as Chris Carlisle, a dying CIA assassin who in 1973 is visiting Chile’s Easter Island with a protégé, played by Sam Rockwell, who just may kill his mentor before their getaway is over.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • Attacks by bandits are common across northern Nigeria where armed groups carry out attacks against civilian populations.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Attacks by bandits are common across northern Nigeria, where armed groups carry out attacks against civilian populations.
    — Dyepkazah Shibayan, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of bandit

Browse Nearby Words

gang
gangbanger
gangbangers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gangbanger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangbanger. Accessed 13 Nov. 2026.

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