malefactor
[mal-uh-fak-ter]
- a person who violates the law; criminal.
- a person who does harm or evil, especially toward another.
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Origin of malefactor
Synonyms for malefactor
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comAntonyms for malefactor
2. benefactor.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for malefactor
ruffian, villain, hoodlum, felon, thug, varlet, delinquent, culprit, rascal, wretch, wrongdoer, convict, scoundrel, evildoer, outcast, rogue, prisoner, outlaw, rowdy, scampExamples from the Web for malefactor
Contemporary Examples of malefactor
We had to stand with Ukraine to send a strong message to the malefactor Putin.
Historical Examples of malefactor
Even supposing that Joggi were the malefactor, where was the rest of that money?
Rico and WiseliJohanna Spyri
Like a malefactor out on bail, he was painting a picture for the future.
A Breath of Prairie and other storiesWill Lillibridge
His rhoomatism's merely that malefactor's way of goin' onder cover.
Faro Nell and Her FriendsAlfred Henry Lewis
In this way, secured like a malefactor, I was ordered forward.
Jack HintonCharles James Lever
Pizarro acquired the mastery of Peru by the act of a malefactor.
Ferdinand De Soto, The Discoverer of the MississippiJohn S. C. Abbott
malefactor
- a criminal; wrongdoer
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Word Origin for malefactor
C15: via Old French from Latin, from malefacere to do evil
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
Word Origin and History for malefactor
mid-15c., from Latin malefactor, agent noun from past participle stem of malefacere "to do evil," from male "badly" (see mal-) + facere "to perform" (see factitious).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper