criminal
UK: /ˈkrɪm.ɪ.nəl/ | US: /ˈkrɪm.ə.nəl/
n. a person who has committed a crime
adj. relating to or involving crime
adj. morally wrong; disgraceful
The word "criminal" traces back to Latin criminalis, derived from crimen (accusation, offense). The root crimen originally referred to a legal charge or verdict, later narrowing to mean "crime." The suffix -inalis (later simplified to -inal) was used to form adjectives, giving "criminal" its modern sense of "related to crime." Over time, it evolved to describe both the act (adj.) and the perpetrator (n.).
The criminal was sentenced to ten years in prison.
She studied criminal law to become a prosecutor.
His actions were deemed criminal by the court.
The documentary exposed the criminal activities of the organization.
Negligence of this scale borders on criminal behavior.