bad guy

[ bad gahy ]

noun

, Informal.

1. an evil or malicious person; a villain or someone perceived as one:

   The actor now makes his living guest starring as the bad guy on many different TV shows.

   Business consulting can turn you into the bad guy for people who don't want to know their idea could fail.

2. any person who does bad or harmful things, especially habitually:

   In tech security, you just have to live with the fact that the bad guys are already ahead of you.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bad guy¹

An Americanism first recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

Ass-kicking, bad guy-killing Carter is just a future spinster.

From The Daily Beast

As far as I was concerned he was the best bad guy in the history of the movies.

From The Daily Beast

Our bad guy is Weather Wizard (not a joke), who not only looks like Kurt Cobain but can use his palms to conjure angry storms.

From The Daily Beast

“I don't think Thompson is an inherently bad guy,” says Rosenberg.

From The Daily Beast

The evil inclination is saying in this song, ‘I’m looked at as this bad guy, but you have power, you have control.

From The Daily Beast

Maybe because I wanted to show that a bad guy could do somethin' for his country.

From Project Gutenberg

When they think of someone being spied on, they think of someone else, a bad guy.

From Project Gutenberg

He discovers compelling evidence that a bad guy killed your father.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• antagonist
• antihero
• bad person
• baddie
• baddy
• cad
• knave
• miscreant
• scoundrel
• villain