rap sheet
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of rap sheet
1955–60; rap 1 (in the slang sense “a criminal charge”)
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.
When asked last week whether the person arrested outside the news conference had a criminal record, a Homeland Security spokesperson said the agency would share a criminal rap sheet when it was available.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025
Sure, bunnies are cute, but Bugs Bunny must have a rap sheet as long as his arm.
From Slate ● Apr. 18, 2025
He had a rap sheet stretching back to the 1970s, according to French regional media outlet France 3.
From BBC ● Mar. 12, 2025
Santos, a New York Republican, is scheduled to stand trial next year on a lengthy rap sheet that includes charges that he defrauded donors, lied to election officials and stole unemployment benefits.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 2, 2023
I got a school rap sheet, but in school they call it a "file."
From "Ghost" by Jason Reynolds
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.
