as in thugs
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 gangsters
Violent gangsters ran fentanyl and human smuggling over the Rio Grande.
—
Ioan Grillo, Time, 15 Apr. 2026
They get captured by Hungarian gangsters and have to fight (and kill) their way out of an inn run by a shady former dance prodigy (Uma Thurman).
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2026
Once housing notorious gangsters such as Al Capone, the notorious Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary closed its doors to prisoners in 1963, since becoming a museum.
—Zach Halaschak, The Washington Examiner, 3 Apr. 2026
Prosecutors used details from the home takeover to argue for a lengthy prison term, describing how Serrano and other gangsters took advantage of an 84-year-old woman who had dementia.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
American gangsters ran the hotels and the gambling.
—Joseph J. Gonzalez, The Conversation, 23 Mar. 2026
Kelly spends the first half of his book running through a who’s who of the New England underworld, gangsters and mob wannabes who likely came into contact with the art before the investigation reached Maine and Gentile.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 22 Mar. 2026
Set in the Mississippi Delta during the early 1930s, the film follows Smoke and Stack, twin brothers (both played by Jordan) who return to their hometown after years spent working for Chicago gangsters, hoping to start fresh and leave their violent past behind.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 15 Mar. 2026
All of this follows a long tradition in filmmaking that extends back to early Soviet films through Italian neorealist projects through Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas, which featured some real gangsters.
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 12 Mar. 2026
Ioan Grillo, Time, 15 Apr. 2026
They get captured by Hungarian gangsters and have to fight (and kill) their way out of an inn run by a shady former dance prodigy (Uma Thurman).
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2026
Once housing notorious gangsters such as Al Capone, the notorious Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary closed its doors to prisoners in 1963, since becoming a museum.
—Zach Halaschak, The Washington Examiner, 3 Apr. 2026
Prosecutors used details from the home takeover to argue for a lengthy prison term, describing how Serrano and other gangsters took advantage of an 84-year-old woman who had dementia.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
American gangsters ran the hotels and the gambling.
—Joseph J. Gonzalez, The Conversation, 23 Mar. 2026
Kelly spends the first half of his book running through a who’s who of the New England underworld, gangsters and mob wannabes who likely came into contact with the art before the investigation reached Maine and Gentile.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 22 Mar. 2026
Set in the Mississippi Delta during the early 1930s, the film follows Smoke and Stack, twin brothers (both played by Jordan) who return to their hometown after years spent working for Chicago gangsters, hoping to start fresh and leave their violent past behind.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 15 Mar. 2026
All of this follows a long tradition in filmmaking that extends back to early Soviet films through Italian neorealist projects through Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas, which featured some real gangsters.
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 12 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangsters
Noun
-
The thugs would insinuate themselves into the confidence of wayfarers and, when a favorable opportunity presented itself, strangle them by throwing a handkerchief or noose around their necks.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
31 Mar. 2026
-
No government masked thugs shooting down our neighbors in the streets.—
Diego Parrado,
Vanity Fair,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The scheme is designed to identify suspected criminals, combat identity fraud, and to police the EU's limit on 90-day stays within a 180-day period, according to the European Commission.—
Emma Clarke,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Rex Heuermann, the man known as the Gilgo Beach killer, admitted to killing eight women over a span of decades, and the FBI is now looking into what motivated the 62-year-old to carry out his crimes to help capture other criminals in the future.—
Matt Lavietes,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There are flying cars held at bay by the power of telekenesis and Park teleporting, as the crew clumsily accept their new ‘hero’ roles and attempt to take on the villains threatening the peace of Haeseong City.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
22 Apr. 2026
-
The playoffs have delivered their share of Knicks villains over the years, from Reggie Miller to Joel Embiid to Tyrese Haliburton.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
An unusual theft at a Pennsylvania Wawa has police going bananas for a pair of potassium bandits.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Set against mountainous landscapes and rural lakes, the story follows a wandering swordsman who is falsely accused of stealing a shipment of gold and must unravel a web of intrigue involving bandits, palace guards and corrupt officials while attempting to clear his name.—
Lin Ying-Hsuan,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No wonder all these characters wanted to become assassins, Scott implies; they’re removed from reality by so many orders of magnitude that living, breathing fellow humans are just blurry images.—
Theater Critic,
San Francisco Chronicle,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Mirrors were such a precious commodity in the heyday of the Venetian Republic that the assassins were dispatched to, well, dispatch any defectors who left La Serenissima and tried to take the secrets of creating that mesmerizing, reflective surface along with them.—
Mark Ellwood,
Robb Report,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Iran has gone from having the most lethal navy in the Middle East to now acting like a bunch of pirates.—
Charbel Mallo,
CNN Money,
22 Apr. 2026
-
And some influencers say the new clip from Supergirl was good — Kara on a space-bus full of aliens who get attacked by pirates, with a Guardians of the Galaxy vibe.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In Big Mistakes, Levy and Taylor Ortega play siblings who shoplift a necklace from a jewelry store to give to their grandmother on her deathbed, only to be blackmailed by the mobsters that run the place into a series of increasingly stupid and dangerous errands.—
K. Thor Jensen,
PC Magazine,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The film will chart the pursuit and capture of one of America’s most ruthless mobsters and serial killers by notorious DEA Agent Jim Hunt (who also helped take down El Chapo) played by Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird).—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gangsters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangsters. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
