Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun
- an action or an instance of negligence that is deemed injurious to the public welfare or morals or to the interests of the state and that is legally prohibited.
- criminal activity and those engaged in it: to fight crime.
- the habitual or frequent commission of crimes: a life of crime.
- any offense, serious wrongdoing, or sin.
- a foolish, senseless, or shameful act: It’s a crime to let that beautiful garden go to ruin.
noun
- an act or omission prohibited and punished by law
-
- unlawful acts in generala wave of crime
- (as modifier)crime wave
- an evil act
- informal something to be regrettedit is a crime that he died young
mid-13c., “sinfulness,” from Old French crimne (12c., Modern French crime), from Latin crimen (genitive criminis) “charge, indictment, accusation; crime, fault, offense,” perhaps from cernere “to decide, to sift” (see crisis). But Klein (citing Brugmann) rejects this and suggests *cri-men, which originally would have been “cry of distress” (Tucker also suggests a root in “cry” words and refers to English plaint, plaintiff, etc.). Meaning “offense punishable by law” is from late 14c. The Latin word is glossed in Old English by facen, also “deceit, fraud, treachery.” Crime wave first attested 1893, American English.