- [usually before noun] (rather formal or law) connected with or involving crime
- It should be a criminal offence to inflict cruelty on any wild animal.
- Criminal activities pose significant threats to the economy and national security.
- a criminal act punishable by up to five years in jail
- She has been cleared of criminal negligence (= the illegal act of somebody failing to do something that they should do, with the result that somebody else is harmed).
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- [only before noun] connected to the laws that deal with crime
- the criminal justice system
- to bring criminal charges against somebody
- a criminal lawyer/court/trial
- a criminal investigation
- a criminal prosecution/conviction
- a criminal case
- The former minister could face criminal proceedings over his involvement in the deal.
- morally wrong
- This is a criminal waste of resources.
Word Originlate Middle English (as an adjective): from late Latin criminalis, from Latin crimen ‘judgement, offence’, crimin-, based on cernere ‘to judge’.
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criminal