as in brutes
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person
only a heartless villain would kidnap a baby for ransom
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of villains
By dismissing shooters as incomprehensible villains, Peterson says, families and communities may miss warning signs in the young people around them.
—
Brit McCandless Farmer, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
In the finale, Muck takes the fall for Tender while the true villains get away.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
And where do the villains come in?
—Charlotte Observer, 25 Feb. 2026
His heroic actions — along with those of returning protagonists Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) —ultimately foil the villains.
—Carole Horst, Variety, 24 Feb. 2026
This is just one of dozens of tweets railing about the deep state and other MAGA villains that Bankman-Fried, one of the century’s most notorious financial criminals, has published in recent weeks despite being locked up for 25 years in federal prison.
—Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
Not that there aren’t villains; indeed, as much as there is accord within the household, there is discord without.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Season 20 premiere, which is still my favorite season, opens up with those helicopters, with the hero tribe on one side and the villains on the other.
—Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 22 Feb. 2026
In Marvel Oreo canon, three packs of the legend cookies made it to stores but Marvel villains were blocking the fourth pack's way.
—Rin Velasco, The Providence Journal, 20 Feb. 2026
Brit McCandless Farmer, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
In the finale, Muck takes the fall for Tender while the true villains get away.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
And where do the villains come in?
—Charlotte Observer, 25 Feb. 2026
His heroic actions — along with those of returning protagonists Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) —ultimately foil the villains.
—Carole Horst, Variety, 24 Feb. 2026
This is just one of dozens of tweets railing about the deep state and other MAGA villains that Bankman-Fried, one of the century’s most notorious financial criminals, has published in recent weeks despite being locked up for 25 years in federal prison.
—Leo Schwartz, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
Not that there aren’t villains; indeed, as much as there is accord within the household, there is discord without.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Season 20 premiere, which is still my favorite season, opens up with those helicopters, with the hero tribe on one side and the villains on the other.
—Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 22 Feb. 2026
In Marvel Oreo canon, three packs of the legend cookies made it to stores but Marvel villains were blocking the fourth pack's way.
—Rin Velasco, The Providence Journal, 20 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for villains
Noun
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For much of his career, Skarsgård has gravitated toward characters who weaponize physical presence — Vikings, tech titans and mythic brutes whose power is immediately legible.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
9 Jan. 2026
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Credit to producers Tim Zinnemann and George Linder for selecting a veritable array of brutes to wage battle with Arnold.—
Duane Byrge,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Nov. 2025
Noun
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But this remains a polling no-brainer for lawmakers, who are tired of being seen as self-serving greed monsters.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Gyllenhaal cast her husband Peter Sarsgaard as a detective in pursuit of the two monsters on the run, with Penelope Cruz as his partner.—
Stephen Schaefer,
Boston Herald,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Whatley said those policies threaten law enforcement officers and public safety, arguing that criminals belong behind bars and pledging to continue backing law enforcement.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
7 Mar. 2026
-
The decisive action of the Mexican government is positive for families on both sides of the border who suffer the devastating consequences of the activities of these transnational criminals.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Creuzot, a former state district judge and pioneer of diversion programs that steer low-level offenders from prison into rehabilitation programs, ran on his record.—
Gromer Jeffers Jr,
Dallas Morning News,
9 Mar. 2026
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The offenders forcefully entered the home, in the 700 block of Rosewood Avenue, after one of them posed as a food delivery worker to gain access to the home, Winnetka police said.—
Pioneer Press,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Some Ottomans believed that Alawites were possessed by devils.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Mar. 2026
-
There are sounds and shadows in the forest; the Devil, or devils, may be walking the earth.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Or Irish, in a time when they were seen as savages by the Englishmen?—
Arushi Jacob,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Police arrested one of four snowball bandits caught on camera clobbering the cops with snow.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Traditional western dramas were more likely to depict vaqueros as bandits than hard-working ranch hands whose contributions were fundamental to the American West.—
Foreign Correspondent,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Political leaders who encourage or tolerate such scoundrels should be driven from office.—
Tom Nichols,
The Atlantic,
23 Feb. 2026
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Giannis, a gentleman even in this era of scoundrels, likely wants to do right by the Bucks, too.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
3 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Villains.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/villains. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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