gangster

noun

ˈgaŋ-stər How to pronounce gangster (audio)
Definition of gangsternext
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang Al Capone remains one of the most notorious gangsters in American history

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 gangster Ritchson plays a tough guy who falls for a local gangster’s girl. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 21 July 2026 Clayface stars Tom Rhys Harries (White Lines, Suspicion) as Matt Hagen, a promising actor in Gotham City who’s left mutilated by a mob boss for sleeping with the gangster’s girlfriend. — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 21 July 2026 Remember all those fake memoirs from the early 2000s, by all those writers pretending to be addicts and gangsters and Holocaust survivors? — James Parker, The Atlantic, 20 July 2026 In each, the protagonist(s) will be sought by both police and gangsters yet will lose their own money and have to get along without any while on the run. — Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for gangster
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangster
  1. thug
  2. criminal
  3. villain
  4. bandit
  5. assassin
  6. mobster
Noun
  • Tae-ha’s mom left him after Sang-gil, who was also a boxer prior to becoming a thug, cheated in a match.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Shortly after his big win, he’s attacked by two thugs in a parking garage.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 July 2026
Definition of thug
Noun
  • Spencer says filmmaker Douglas wanted to very much focus mostly on the women rather than talking about the criminals.
    — Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Depending on the plan, monitoring may cover credit activity, financial accounts, investment and retirement accounts, phone takeovers, SIM swaps, utility accounts and other areas where criminals may try to use your identity.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • Broncos coach/Falcons villain/Bountygate co-conspirator Sean Payton took a shot at the home fans during a halftime interview on Friday.
    — Michael Cunningham, AJC.com, 17 Aug. 2026
  • How did directors Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado get Salonga to play a villain?
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of villain
Noun
  • Armed groups, known as bandits in Nigeria, regularly carry out raids and kidnappings for ransom in the northwest and north-central parts of the country.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The film reimagines the legend of Chang’Er, the moon goddess, and her husband, the archer Hou Yi, picking up the story after Chang’Er ascends to the moon and setting her on a journey to its dark side alongside a bandit from Earth.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of bandit
Noun
  • Sharlto Copley brings ferocious life to his role as an assassin, setting a record in the process for the most times one person can have his head explode in a single film.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Created by Tessa Coates, Ride Or Die centers on an assassin, Judith (Waddingham), whose best friend of more than 20 years, MP’s wife Debbie (Spencer), is pulled into her latest case.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • Imperioli played the erratic and insecure rising mobster Christopher Moltisanti across The Sopranos’ six-season run on HBO.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Pastore was cast as a mobster many times throughout his career.
    — Jack Dunn, Variety, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of mobster

Browse Nearby Words

gangstas
gangster
gangsterism
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gangster.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangster. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on gangster

Nglish: Translation of gangster for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of balmy

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All