offender
Americannoun
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offenders
plural
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someone who has violated a criminal, religious, or moral law.
The program aids individuals already in the criminal justice system and is geared toward nonviolent offenders.
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a person or thing that irritates, annoys, or angers.
Some of us tried to take matters into our own hands by confronting the noise pollution offenders, but they were entirely unwilling to quiet down.
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something that is disagreeable.
If you’re curious about the odor, I’m afraid you’ll find that the offender is a catbox that has not been emptied recently.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of offender
Explanation
An offender is a criminal, someone who breaks the law. A first-time offender, depending on the crime, might only have to pay a fine or perform community service. Offender is the way prison inmates and lawbreakers are often referred to in news reports or by police officers and prison staff. You might hear terms like "drug offenders," people arrested for crimes involving illegal drugs, or "juvenile offenders," young people who have broken the law. Offender comes from the verb offend, "to sin against" in the fourteenth century, from the Latin offendere, "to hit or strike against."
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.
See Examples For:
The law now says that judges should normally suspend such terms - meaning the offender won't go to prison unless they commit another crime.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Readings include a former president’s lecture about gender at Harvard, as well as the school’s own reports on its legacy of slavery and the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s connections to the university.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
Senate nominee, Michael Whatley, for his ties to Harvey West Jr., a GOP donor and convicted sex offender whom Whatley repeatedly elevated to top posts within the state Republican Party.
From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2026
The US House of Representatives has agreed to hold billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress for defying legal summons related to its investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Fifty years ago, the prevailing concept in the American criminal justice system was that everyone in the community is the victim when an offender commits a violent crime.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
After years as one of the industry’s worst offenders, the carrier says it is ending the practice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
For years American had been one of the worst offenders.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
"Their dedication helps ensure young offenders are punished as appropriate while being supported into rehabilitation, and we will deliver on our commitment to give children in prison more time outside their room," a spokesperson said.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Around 700 offenders are expected to be freed with the first wave on Thursday, as prisoners serving sentences of up to 19 months become eligible for release after a third of their term.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
A captain we’d never seen before came in and threatened us, swearing he’d track down and fire the worst offenders.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
