hate crime

American  

noun

• hate crimes
  plural

1. a crime, usually violent, motivated by prejudice or intolerance toward an individual’s national origin, ethnicity, skin color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.

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hate crime British  

noun

1. a crime, esp of violence, in which the victim is targeted because of his or her race, religion, sexuality, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hate crimes
  plural

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hate crime

"We will take a zero-tolerance approach to hate crime and other offending," said senior Met officer Carl Galvin.

From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Altadena Station launched a hate crime investigation, which remains ongoing, Captain Ethan Marquez confirmed this week.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

In a statement, Supt Owen Renowden, the Met's hate crime lead, said: "We're adapting our approach to improve both the speed and quality of our response, while strengthening outcomes for victims."

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

In California, reported hate crime rates are down 3.4% from 2024, but hate crimes involving racial or ethnic bias have increased by 6.2%, according to the 2025 Hate Crime in California report.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026

“They said it was a hate crime, but he had family that wasn’t straight,” Richard’s friend Lidell said.

From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater