1
as in criminal
a person who commits moral wrongs
she regards anyone who would cause the breakup of a family as a malefactor of the worst sort
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in offender
a person who has committed a crime
the victim was able to give a clear description of the malefactor to the police
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of malefactor
This keeps malefactors from abusing the service to snoop on private data other than their own.
—
PCMAG, 7 Jan. 2025
If not properly secured, OTA updates may be intercepted and altered by malefactors, risking the reliability of the entire system.
—Klaudia Zaika, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
In her introductory speech, Amanpour foreshadows what’s to come, warning that malefactors with enticing narratives can only manipulate us because of our eagerness to believe them.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2024
Either way, The Lowdown finds Harjo dipping into pleasantly familiar reservoirs of fiction in which the protagonists know how to take a constant beating, the malefactors are all suspiciously verbose and ostentatious hats abound.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for malefactor
PCMAG, 7 Jan. 2025
If not properly secured, OTA updates may be intercepted and altered by malefactors, risking the reliability of the entire system.
—Klaudia Zaika, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
In her introductory speech, Amanpour foreshadows what’s to come, warning that malefactors with enticing narratives can only manipulate us because of our eagerness to believe them.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2024
Either way, The Lowdown finds Harjo dipping into pleasantly familiar reservoirs of fiction in which the protagonists know how to take a constant beating, the malefactors are all suspiciously verbose and ostentatious hats abound.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for malefactor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for malefactor
Noun
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To suggest that another candidate’s supporters are criminals — particularly when that candidate is, by all measures, poised to win at least a plurality of votes in the city — does not seem like a recipe for earning New Yorkers’ support.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
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Binance also lacked protocols — standard for financial services companies — to report transactions for money laundering risks, according to the Justice Department, and employees were well aware that such an oversight would invite criminals to the platform.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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While undergoing the months-long program, offenders participate in half-day programming and half-day work, school, or vocational activities.—
Kevin Dolak,
HollywoodReporter,
31 Oct. 2025
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The danger of restoring offenders has played out in less formal ways.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In Capitol Reef’s considerable backcountry–as in all underfunded national parks and monuments— staffing does not allow for constant patrolling to apprehend and ticket wrongdoers.—
Stephen Trimble,
Denver Post,
20 Oct. 2025
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Maryland continues to maintain a civil justice system that favors wrongdoers instead of people innocently injured due to negligence.—
Bruce M. Plaxen,
Baltimore Sun,
12 July 2025
Noun
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As a sinner, I am only saved through His grace and mercy.—
Khaleda Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Sep. 2025
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Like Scorsese’s work, Miller’s documentary is both big and small, local and global, and dense with sinners and saints alike.—
Vulture Staff,
Vulture,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Yet if the Dodgers are to be cast as villains from the Book of Samuel, Toronto brought to the fight far more than pebbles.—
Andy McCullough,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
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The family moved to Hollywood 10 years later, and Gene Lockhart worked steadily as a character actor, usually in avuncular roles, sometimes as a villain.—
NPR,
NPR,
25 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Malefactor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/malefactor. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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