criminal
crim·i·nal/ˈkɹɪm.ɪ.nəl/adjective, noun
criminal is spelled C-R-I-M-I-N-A-L: 8 letters and 3 syllables (crim·i·nal). It appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, criminal means “Against the law; forbidden by law” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in criminal?
| Letters | 8: C-R-I-M-I-N-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: crim·i·nal |
| In writing | 56 times per million words; the 1,822nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is criminal?
Criminal appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce criminal?
- US /ˈkɹɪm.ɪ.nəl/
- /ˈkɹɪm.ə.nəl/
Criminal has 3 syllables, split crim·i·nal in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-criminal.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of criminal
- more criminal comparative
- most criminal superlative
- criminals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does criminal mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Against the law; forbidden by law.
- 2
Guilty of breaking the law.
- 3
Of or relating to crime or penal law.
His long criminal record suggests that he is a dangerous man.
- 4
Abhorrent or very undesirable.
Printing such asinine opinions is criminal!
noun
- 1
A person who is guilty of a crime, notably breaking the law.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate criminal?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of criminal: Crim..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Criminal in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | criminel , criminelle |
| German | kriminell , Krimineller, Kriminelle, Verbrecher, Verbrecherin, Übeltäter |
| Portuguese | criminoso , criminosa , culpado , criminal |
| Spanish | criminal |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does criminal come from?
From Middle English cryminal, borrowed from Anglo-Norman criminal, from Late Latin criminalis, from Latin crimen (“crime”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).