Criminal in Different Languages
Discover 'Criminal' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Criminal
Afrikaans misdadiger | ||
Albanian kriminel | ||
Amharic ወንጀለኛ | ||
Arabic مجرم | ||
Armenian հանցագործ | ||
Assamese অপৰাধী | ||
Aymara juchani jaqi | ||
Azerbaijani cinayətkar | ||
Bambara kojugukɛla | ||
Basque gaizkilea | ||
Belarusian злачынца | ||
Bengali অপরাধী | ||
Bhojpuri अपराधी के बा | ||
Bosnian kriminalac | ||
Bulgarian престъпник | ||
Catalan criminal | ||
Cebuano kriminal | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 刑事 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 刑事 | ||
Corsican criminali | ||
Croatian zločinački | ||
Czech zločinec | ||
Danish kriminel | ||
Dhivehi ކުށްވެރިއެކެވެ | ||
Dogri अपराधी | ||
Dutch crimineel | ||
English criminal | ||
Esperanto krimulo | ||
Estonian kurjategija | ||
Ewe nuvlowɔla | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) kriminal | ||
Finnish rikollinen | ||
French criminel | ||
Frisian krimineel | ||
Galician criminal | ||
Georgian კრიმინალური | ||
German kriminell | ||
Greek εγκληματίας | ||
Guarani criminal rehegua | ||
Gujarati ગુનેગાર | ||
Haitian Creole kriminèl | ||
Hausa mai laifi | ||
Hawaiian lawehala | ||
Hebrew פְּלִילִי | ||
Hindi आपराधिक | ||
Hmong txhaum | ||
Hungarian bűnügyi | ||
Icelandic glæpamaður | ||
Igbo omempụ | ||
Ilocano kriminal nga | ||
Indonesian pidana | ||
Irish coiriúil | ||
Italian penale | ||
Japanese 犯罪者 | ||
Javanese kriminal | ||
Kannada ಕ್ರಿಮಿನಲ್ | ||
Kazakh қылмыстық | ||
Khmer ឧក្រិដ្ឋជន | ||
Kinyarwanda inkozi y'ibibi | ||
Konkani गुन्यांवकार | ||
Korean 범죄자 | ||
Krio kriminal | ||
Kurdish emelxirab | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) تاوانبار | ||
Kyrgyz кылмыштуу | ||
Lao ຄະດີອາຍາ | ||
Latin criminalis | ||
Latvian noziedznieks | ||
Lingala mosali mabe | ||
Lithuanian nusikaltėlis | ||
Luganda omumenyi w’amateeka | ||
Luxembourgish krimineller | ||
Macedonian криминалец | ||
Maithili अपराधी | ||
Malagasy mpanao heloka bevava | ||
Malay penjenayah | ||
Malayalam കുറ്റവാളി | ||
Maltese kriminali | ||
Maori taihara | ||
Marathi गुन्हेगार | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯀ꯭ꯔꯤꯃꯤꯅꯦꯜ ꯑꯣꯏꯕꯥ꯫ | ||
Mizo misual tihna a ni | ||
Mongolian гэмт хэрэгтэн | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ရာဇဝတ်မှု | ||
Nepali आपराधिक | ||
Norwegian forbryter | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) wachifwamba | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଅପରାଧୀ | ||
Oromo yakkamaa | ||
Pashto مجرم | ||
Persian جنایی | ||
Polish kryminalista | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) criminoso | ||
Punjabi ਅਪਰਾਧੀ | ||
Quechua huchasapa | ||
Romanian penal | ||
Russian преступник | ||
Samoan tagata solitulafono | ||
Sanskrit अपराधी | ||
Scots Gaelic eucorach | ||
Sepedi sesenyi | ||
Serbian злочиначки | ||
Sesotho senokoane | ||
Shona tsotsi | ||
Sindhi ڏوهاري | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) අපරාධ | ||
Slovak trestný | ||
Slovenian kriminalec | ||
Somali dambiile | ||
Spanish delincuente | ||
Sundanese penjahat | ||
Swahili jinai | ||
Swedish kriminell | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) kriminal | ||
Tajik ҷиноятӣ | ||
Tamil குற்றவாளி | ||
Tatar җинаятьче | ||
Telugu క్రిమినల్ | ||
Thai อาชญากร | ||
Tigrinya ገበነኛ | ||
Tsonga vugevenga | ||
Turkish adli | ||
Turkmen jenaýatçy | ||
Twi (Akan) nsɛmmɔnedifo | ||
Ukrainian злочинний | ||
Urdu مجرمانہ | ||
Uyghur جىنايەتچى | ||
Uzbek jinoyatchi | ||
Vietnamese tội phạm | ||
Welsh troseddol | ||
Xhosa ulwaphulo-mthetho | ||
Yiddish פאַרברעכער | ||
Yoruba odaran | ||
Zulu isigebengu |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | "Misdadiger" is derived from Dutch and literally means "person who does wrong." |
| Albanian | The word "kriminel" in Albanian derives from the Latin word "crimen" meaning "accusation" or "charge". It also has a secondary meaning of "sinful" or "wicked". |
| Amharic | 'ወንጀለኛ' can be a noun, meaning 'criminal', or an adjective, meaning 'criminal' or 'unlawful'. |
| Arabic | The word "مجرم" also means "wounded" in Arabic, implying that criminals are often victims of circumstance. |
| Armenian | The Armenian word “հանցագործ” (“criminal”) is an adjective that literally means “who committed a crime” and comes from the root “hanc” meaning “crime” or “sin.” |
| Azerbaijani | The word cinayətkar (criminal) is derived from the Arabic word "cinayet" (crime) and carries the alternative meaning of "perpetrator of a crime or wrong" |
| Basque | In some Basque dialects, "gaizkilea" means "wicked" or "evil" rather than specifically "criminal". |
| Belarusian | The word "злачынца" in Belarusian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*zъlydь", meaning "evil person" or "villain". |
| Bengali | The word 'অপরাধী' can also refer to someone who has committed a minor offense or who is guilty of a moral transgression. |
| Bosnian | Kriminalac shares an etymology with the words for "crime" and "sin" and refers to a person considered as a morally depraved offender. |
| Bulgarian | "Престъпник" can mean both "criminal" and also "lawbreaker". |
| Catalan | The word "criminal" derives from the Latin word "crimen" meaning "accusation" or "charge". |
| Cebuano | The word "kriminal" also has the alternate meaning of "wicked" in Cebuano. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | "刑事" comes from "狱吏", who were prison guards, hence the extended meaning of "criminal" or "related to crime". |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 刑事 originally meant "judicial matters" and only later came to mean "criminal". |
| Corsican | The term derives from medieval Latin criminalis meaning "an accusation of a crime". |
| Croatian | The Croatian word "zločinački" derives from the word "zlo" ("evil"), and originally referred to any misdeed, not only criminal offenses. |
| Czech | "Zločinec" can be either masculine ("zločinec") or feminine ("zločinkyně") in Czech. |
| Danish | "Kriminel" literally means "criminal" in Danish, but can also refer to someone who behaves badly or unfairly. |
| Dutch | The Dutch word "crimineel" originated from the Latin word "crimen" meaning "accusation" or "crime". |
| Esperanto | In Esperanto, "krimulo" also refers to an actor portraying a criminal character on stage or film. |
| Estonian | "Kurjategija" originates from the Estonian word "kurjus" meaning "evil" and the suffix "-tegija" meaning "doer". It can also convey the meaning of a mischievous prankster or hooligan. |
| Finnish | The word "rikollinen" is derived from the Old Swedish word "rykill", meaning "a vagrant" or "a rogue". |
| French | The French word "criminel" originated from the Latin word "criminalis," which meant "of a crime" or "pertaining to a crime." |
| Frisian | In Frisian the word "krimineel" means both "criminal" and "criminal act". |
| Galician | "Criminal" comes from the Latin "crimen" meaning "accusation" or "charge", and not from "crim" meaning "crime" |
| German | The etymology of **kriminell** is uncertain but is potentially derived from Latin crim(in)osus "criminal" via French criminel or Italian criminale, possibly from an unattested Late Latin *criminare, meaning "to charge with a crime". |
| Greek | The word "εγκληματίας" is derived from the Ancient Greek verb "εγκλίνω", meaning "to turn away" or "to slope away". |
| Gujarati | The word "ગુનેગાર" can also refer to a person who has committed a sin or fault, or, in law, a defendant or accused person. |
| Haitian Creole | Kriminèl shares the same etymology with the English word 'criminal' and the French word 'criminel'. |
| Hausa | The Hausa word "mai laifi" (alternatively "laifi") can refer to a common criminal, but also carries the meaning of "a person with no morals or scruples". |
| Hawaiian | Historically, "lawehala" was also used in Hawaiian to describe "offenders, wrongdoers, or sinners facing a higher deity." |
| Hebrew | Etymology: Related to the words "פֶּלֶל" (accusation) and "פָּעַל" (did). Can also mean "guilt-inducing" or "self-incriminating." |
| Hindi | The word "आपराधिक" can also refer to "illegal" or "unlawful" acts or offenses. |
| Hmong | "Txhaum" can mean 'evil' in Hmong, and is also a Hmong dialect. |
| Hungarian | The word "bűnügyi" ultimately derives from the Proto-Germanic word "būną", meaning "punishment". |
| Icelandic | The word "glæpamaður" in Icelandic is derived from the Old Norse word "glæpr," meaning "crime" or "offense." |
| Igbo | "Omempụ" can also refer to a wicked or evil person, or a person who has committed a grave offense. |
| Indonesian | The word "pidana" is rooted in the old Javanese word "pidana" meaning "wrongdoing". |
| Irish | The Irish term 'coiriúil' also has the alternate meaning of 'illegal', referring to actions or activities that violate the law. |
| Italian | The word "penale" in Italian also means "penalty" and is derived from the Latin word "poena," meaning "punishment." |
| Japanese | The word 犯罪者 (hanzaisha) is derived from the Chinese phrase 犯罪 (hanzai), meaning "crime", and 者 (sha), meaning "person". |
| Javanese | The word "kriminal" in Javanese can also mean "to commit a crime" or "to be criminal". |
| Kannada | The word 'ಕ್ರಿಮಿನಲ್' ('criminal') in Kannada originally meant 'sinful' or 'culpable'. |
| Kazakh | The Kazakh word "қылмыстық" is derived from the Arabic word "جرم" meaning "sin" or "guilt". |
| Khmer | The word “ឧក្រិដ្ឋជន” comes from the Sanskrit word “utkR^iD,” which means “violent” or “harsh,” and has a similar meaning in Khmer. |
| Korean | The word '범죄자' (criminal) is derived from the Korean word '범죄' (crime), which itself comes from the Chinese word '犯罪' (crime). |
| Kurdish | The word "emelxirab" in Kurdish is derived from the Arabic word "mujrim", which also means "criminal". |
| Kyrgyz | In Kyrgyz, the word |
| Latin | "Criminalis" is also used in a wider sense to refer to offenses against the state, including treason and sedition. |
| Latvian | The word "noziedznieks" is derived from the verb "nozagt" (to steal), which in turn comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *nek- (to cause harm). |
| Lithuanian | The term 'nusikaltėlis' stems from the Lithuanian word for 'crime' or 'offence' (nusikaltimas). |
| Luxembourgish | The word "krimineller" is also used to refer to a type of snail in Luxembourgish. |
| Macedonian | The word "криминалец" in Macedonian can also refer to a person who has committed a serious crime. |
| Malagasy | In Malagasy, "mpanao heloka bevava" is also an idiomatic expression meaning "a person who acts quickly and without thinking of the consequences." |
| Malay | The word "penjenayah" in Malay originally comes from the Sanskrit word "apajañin", meaning "sinner" or "wrongdoer". |
| Maltese | The Maltese word "kriminali" derives from the Latin word "criminalis". |
| Maori | The word "taihara" can also refer to a rogue warrior or a person who defies authority. |
| Marathi | In Marathi, the word "गुन्हेगार" literally means "one who commits a "गुन्हा" (crime) or "sin". |
| Mongolian | "Гэмт хэрэгтэн" is also used to describe people who have committed serious crimes such as murder or robbery. |
| Nepali | The Sanskrit origin of "आपराधिक" is the same root behind the English word "operation". |
| Norwegian | The word "forbryter" comes from the Old Norse word "forbryta," which had the broader meaning of breaking a covenant, promise, or moral obligation. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "wachifwamba" in Nyanja (Chichewa) can also refer to someone who is mischievous or unruly. |
| Pashto | The word "مجرم" also means "sinner" or "guilty one" in Pashto. |
| Persian | The word "جنایی" is derived from the Arabic word "جنایت", which means "crime", and can also refer to "criminal cases" or "criminal trials" in Persian. |
| Polish | The word "kryminalista" can also refer to a specialist in criminal investigation or a forensic scientist. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In the Brazilian state of Bahia and in some other Northeastern dialects, it can also mean "scoundrel, rascal". |
| Romanian | The word "penal" in Romanian is derived from the Latin word "poena", meaning "punishment" or "penalty." |
| Russian | The word "преступник" also means "lawbreaker". |
| Samoan | 'Solitulafono' also refers to a person with no status, or a person with a low status in the family. |
| Scots Gaelic | The word 'eucorach' (criminal) is of Latin origin, meaning 'outlaw' or 'vagabond'. |
| Serbian | The word 'злочиначки' stems from the Proto-Slavic word 'zъlo', meaning 'evil' or 'harm'. |
| Sesotho | The word "senokoane" can also refer to a person who is wicked or evil. |
| Shona | In the Shona language, the word "tsotsi" can also refer to a sly or cunning person. |
| Sindhi | "ڏوهاري" in Sindhi comes from the Arabic word "ظالم" (cruel) and the Sanskrit word "दोष" (fault). |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | Sinhala word "අපරාධ" also means "wrong-doing" or "transgression", originating from Sanskrit word "aparaadha". |
| Slovak | The word "trestný" comes from the Czech word "trest" meaning "punishment" and is cognate with the English word "trespass". |
| Slovenian | The word "kriminalec" also refers to someone who is involved in a criminal offense. |
| Somali | Dambiile, meaning 'criminal' in Somali, also means 'outcast' or 'social reject' in the social context. |
| Spanish | In Mexican slang, "delincuente" can also refer to a police officer. |
| Sundanese | The word "penjahat" also means "villain" or "bandit" in Sundanese. |
| Swahili | The word 'jinai' in Swahili is cognate with the word 'jenayah' in Malay and Indonesian, both derived from the Arabic word 'jināyah', meaning 'crime' or 'sin'. |
| Swedish | Kriminell was originally used in 17th-century Swedish to refer to a person from Crimea. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word "kriminal" in Tagalog also means "unjust" and is a corruption of the Spanish word "criminal". |
| Tajik | The word "ҷиноятӣ" can also refer to a person who commits crimes or to a crime itself. |
| Telugu | The Telugu word 'క్రిమినల్' can also refer to something that is illegal, wrong, or harmful. |
| Thai | "อาชญากร" (อาช-นะ-กร) comes from the Sanskrit word "ajñāna" (अज्ञान) which means "ignorance". |
| Turkish | "Adli" can also mean "forensic". For example, the "Adli Tıp Kurumu" (Institute of Forensic Medicine) is the organization responsible for forensic science in Turkey. |
| Ukrainian | "Злочинний" is cognate with "злий" - angry, and "зло" - evil. |
| Urdu | The Urdu word "مجرمانہ" can refer to both a felony or a misdemeanor, unlike the English word "criminal". |
| Uzbek | The word "jinoyatchi" can also refer to someone who has committed a minor offense or to a person who is suspected of having committed a crime. |
| Vietnamese | "Tội phạm" literally translates to "sin-doing" or "committing crimes" and is a more formal or literary way of referring to criminals. |
| Welsh | "Troseddol" derives from the Welsh words "trosedd" (misdemeanour) and "dol" (mischief), so the term implies someone who engages in minor crimes or acts of nuisance. |
| Xhosa | Ulwaphulo-mthetho (criminal) refers to a person who violates the law, regardless of their moral standing. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "פאַרברעכער" ("criminal") shares an etymology with the German word "Verbrecher" and the English word "break". It literally means "one who breaks". |
| Yoruba | Odaran primarily means "thief," but can also refer to someone who is dishonest or unreliable. |
| Zulu | Isigeibengu can also mean "a bad deed" or "sin". |
| English | The term 'criminal' originated in 14th century England, deriving from the Latin 'crimen' (accusation). |