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criminology

American  
[krim-uh-nol-uh-jee] / ˌkrɪm əˈnɒl ə dʒi /

noun

  1. the study of crime and criminals: a branch of sociology.


criminology British  
/ ˌkrɪmɪnəˈlɒdʒɪkəl, ˌkrɪmɪˈnɒlədʒɪ /

noun

  1. the scientific study of crime, criminal behaviour, law enforcement, etc See also penology

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of criminology

1855–60; < Latin crīmin- (stem of crīmen; see crime) + -o- + -logy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A meta-analysis in the Annual Review of Criminology reached the same conclusion: Higher immigrant concentrations aren’t associated with more crime and are often linked with less.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025

There he had played lacrosse and mentored youth in Orange County as part of the Criminology Outreach Program.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2025

In 2011, Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology hired him as a lecturer and he moved to Ireland with his wife, now a secretary at a Dublin synagogue, and their four children.

From New York Times • Feb. 7, 2024

The Medieval Murder Maps, assembled by Cambridge's Institute of Criminology, is a website plotting crimes based on 700-year-old coroners' inquests.

From BBC • Sep. 28, 2023

As far as pathological stealing is concerned a number of very suggestive studies have already appeared, a review of which Albrecht has prepared for the Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology.

From Studies in Forensic Psychiatry by Glueck, Bernard

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