villain

noun

ˈvi-lən How to pronounce villain (audio)
Definition of villainnext
as in brute
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person only a heartless villain would kidnap a baby for ransom

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 villain People who once dined together, smiled together, campaigned together and worked together to strengthen our communities are suddenly being portrayed as villains. — Beau Simon, Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2026 There’s no real villain to denounce or berate, and that is perhaps the most heartbreaking part of all. — Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026 Disney vet Jodie Foster in her first Disney animation voiceover role as the villain, Queen Celeste, is intriguing. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 15 Aug. 2026 Samara Weaving will play Emma Frost, another mutant telepath who's been both hero and villain in Marvel Comics mythology. — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 15 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for villain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for villain
  1. brute
  2. monster
  3. criminal
  4. devil
  5. savage
  6. offender
  7. scoundrel
  8. beast
Noun
  • The show’s depiction of Hugh as a family man has been much more sympathetic than the book’s description of him as a power-hungry brute.
    — James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Shinnecock was still a brute of a test, but the red numbers on the white scoreboard were an unfamiliar site for this course.
    — Doug Ferguson, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026
Definition of brute
Noun
  • According to Disney, guests will have the chance to explore the city, meet its citizens, taste unique cuisine, and step into the everyday world of monsters in a totally new way.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 16 Aug. 2026
  • The wild things – fictional monsters Sendak has said were based on his own family members – roll their terrible eyes, gnash their teeth and show their terrible claws.
    — Liz Rosenberg, The Conversation, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of monster
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
  • Throughout the movie, two mentors stand over each of his shoulders like an aproned angel and devil.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2026
  • There’s also a devil, all too ready to perch on his other shoulder, too.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of devil
Noun
  • Manson and his followers evaded police for months but were eventually arrested and charged in the savage slayings in December 1969.
    — Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 15 Aug. 2026
  • For all its characteristic restraint and formal diligence, Killing Spree is a book that wants to make noise, to cut through the dead air with cries of grief and rage, undoing our own savage torpor.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of savage
Noun
  • Dismissal of the charges follows 51-year-old Vem Miller’s completion of a county program that allows first-time, low-level offenders to have their criminal charges dropped and arrest records sealed after completing a set of requirements.
    — Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • If developmental science justifies treating adolescent offenders differently from adults, then that same science should also inform how Connecticut recognizes, protects, and supports adolescent victims.
    — Keith Wortz, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of offender
Noun
  • That range runs from scoundrels to astromechs, and a Jedi is on the table too.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026
  • But Roy Cohn—an American scoundrel and the lawyer who helped send Julius and Ethel Rosenberg to the electric chair, aided Senator Joseph McCarthy in implementing the Red Scare, and showed Trump the ropes in the real-estate business—was long gone.
    — Kai Bird, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of scoundrel
Noun
  • Headline writers like to use words like menageries and beasts to describe it.
    — Marisa Meltzer, Vanity Fair, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Mythical Creatures, designed by Kit Kemp of London’s Firmdale Hotels, is a playful take on fine bone china that comes decorated with folk-art birds and beasts, then finished with a gold rim Kemp customizes herself.
    — Angela Tafoya, Architectural Digest, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of beast

Browse Nearby Words

villages
villain
villainess
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Cite this Entry

“Villain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/villain. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of villain for Spanish Speakers

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