Malefactor

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈmæləˌfæktɚ/

Definitions

1. A person who commits illegal acts or causes harm to others through their wrongful conduct
2. A person who engages in criminal behavior or commits acts that cause injury or harm to others
3. An individual guilty of committing crimes or performing wicked deeds that injure or damage society

Etymology: Malefactor is built from two Latin parts: "male", meaning "evilly" or "badly", and "factus", the past participle of "facere", "to make or do." Put together, the Latin "malefactor" meant someone who had done wrong, a doer of evil. The word passed through Late Latin, and Middle English took it as "malefactour," so the English word has carried its core sense of wrongdoing from the start. The Latin "male" is the same adverb found in "malevolent" and "malign," which is why the prefix signals harm or ill intent in so many English words. Meanwhile "facere" sits behind a large family of English words, from "factory" and "fact" to "manufacture," all rooted in the idea of making or doing.

Synonyms: criminal, offender, wrongdoer, delinquent, lawbreaker

Antonyms: law-abiding citizen, good citizen, hero, benefactor, saint