transgressor

noun

Definition of transgressornext
as in offender

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 transgressor Helen is depicted variously in art and literature as both a transgressor and as a victim of abduction. — Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for transgressor
  1. offender
  2. criminal
  3. lawbreaker
  4. reprobate
  5. villain
  6. felon
  7. sinner
  8. wrongdoer
Noun
  • Because of his previous felonies, though none for violent crimes, Pfister could now be defined as a habitual offender under Michigan law and faces prison.
    — Kyung Lah, CNN Money, 25 July 2026
  • That’s like staying in the dugout during a bench-clearing brawl after a pitcher plonks a batter, then offering the offender a handshake the next inning.
    — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026
Definition of offender
Noun
  • The detective-heroines (and especially the actress-detectives) in this canon are careful about how performance might be extended to social duplicity, dishonesty, and fraud—but the lady criminals of Victorian detective fiction cross this line easily.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 July 2026
  • From 1873 to 1991, the island served as Costa Rica’s principal penitentiary, where some of the country’s worst criminals were sent to serve often short and torturous sentences.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 24 July 2026
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • The Common Law principles that shape sentencing are about accountability for the lawbreaker’s actions.
    — DP Opinion, Denver Post, 23 May 2026
  • Rollins is running for a job in justice, ostensibly to uphold the law and hold lawbreakers accountable.
    — Boston Herald editorial staff, Boston Herald, 10 Apr. 2026
Definition of lawbreaker
Noun
  • Unlike Vegas with its cast of reprobates and wackos, this joint is classy and clean and just a wee bit indulgent.
    — David Weiss, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
  • They’re typically retired, sitting on pensions and 401(k)s, and may be naive to the techniques favored by con artists and reprobates who run riot on the internet.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 9 Sep. 2025
Definition of reprobate
Noun
  • The Athletic’s hockey staff came together to identify the definitive on-ice villain for every team in the NHL.
    — Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 27 July 2026
  • Em details how Alan Rickman who played Hans Gruber, one of the most iconic villains in film history, offered director John McTiernan several key ideas that improved the film.
    — Frank Racioppi, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of villain
Noun
  • Iván stars as Joseph Santiago, a former felon who uncovers a corporate cover-up while investigating a car accident on behalf of a victim’s family.
    — Jack Dunn, Variety, 16 July 2026
  • Turner was convicted in May 2025 of first-degree murder and the unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.
    — Eleanor Jacobs, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
Definition of felon
Noun
  • That relationship was based on sinners confessing their sins to this vicar.
    — Pat Saperstein, Variety, 14 June 2026
  • More joy in Heaven over one sinner who repents than ninety-nine righteous people who’ve got nothing to repent.
    — Jonathan Franzen, New Yorker, 1 June 2026
Definition of sinner
Noun
  • New York’s Bivens Act remedies this by extending the protections of Section 1983 to all individual government wrongdoers — including federal ones.
    — Joel B. Rudin, New York Daily News, 28 June 2026
  • The better approach would focus on reasonableness and negligence, where wrongdoers face accountability.
    — Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 17 June 2026
Definition of wrongdoer

Browse Nearby Words

transgressions
transgressor
transgressors
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Transgressor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/transgressor. Accessed 31 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
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 comely

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

Your vs. You're: How to Use Them Correctly
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Jul. 31

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
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
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All