rogues' gallery

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rogues' gallery

/ɹəʊɡz ˈɡæl(ə)ɹi/ UK
/ɹoʊɡz ˈɡæl(ə)ɹi/ US

Rhymes with -æləɹi

Where it comes from

From rogues (“plural of rogue (‘rascal, scoundrel’)”) + -' + gallery, popularized by the American detectives Allan Pinkerton (1819–1884) and Thomas F. Byrnes (1842–1910).

noun rogues' galleries · rogue gallery

historical A set of pictures of convicted or suspected criminals used in law enforcement investigations to help witnesses identify suspects. Near-synonym: lineup
Similar: lineup
broadly A group of people having the same (usually disreputable) characteristics. In 1919, when Charles E. White began the task of collecting a sort of rogues' gallery of the measurements and family particularities of all makes and models of revolvers and pistols, in the hope of better identification of bullets in murder cases, it seemed a relatively simple enterprise.
broadly A set of supervillains associated with a particular superhero franchise. It is still perhaps the most important decade in Spider-Man's comic book career. The 1960s not only saw the birth of the fabled wall-crawler himself, but they also ushered in one of the greatest rogues galleries in the history of comic books.

Translations

Every language

noun set of pictures of convicted or suspected criminals used in law enforcement investigations to help witnesses identify suspects

日本語	ローグ・ギャラリー rōgu gyararī
العربية	معرض المحتالين

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MLA

"rogues' gallery." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/rogues'%20gallery. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

rogues' gallery. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/rogues'%20gallery

Chicago

"rogues' gallery." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/rogues'%20gallery.

BibTeX

@misc{rogues_gallery_2026,
  title = {rogues' gallery},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/rogues'%20gallery},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}