villain
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villain
- /ˈvɪl.ən/
- /ˈvɪl.jən/ dialectal
Sounds like villein · Rhymes with -ɪlən
Where it comes from
Probably from Middle English vilein, from Old French vilein (modern French vilain), in turn from Late Latin vīllānus, meaning serf or peasant, someone who is bound to the soil of a Latin vīlla, which is to say, worked on the equivalent of a plantation in late Antiquity, in Italy or Gaul. Doublet of villein.
Compare typologically pagan (see more).
noun villains · villan
- A vile, wicked person. Oh moſt pernicious woman! / Oh Villaine, Villaine, ſmiling damned Villaine!
- An extremely depraved person, or one capable or guilty of great crimes.
- A deliberate scoundrel.
- A low-born, abject person. Note the preſumption of this Scythian ſlaue: I tel thee villaine, thoſe that lead my horſe Haue to their names tytles of dignitie, And dar’ſt thou bluntly cal me Baiazeth?
-
A character who has the role of being bad, especially antagonizing the hero; an antagonist who is also evil or malevolent.
Miss Phyllis Morgan, as the hapless heroine dressed in the shabbiest of clothes, appears in the midst of a gay and giddy throng; she apostrophises all and sundry there, including the villain, and has a magnificent scene which always brings down the house, and nightly adds to her histrionic laurels.
Similar: antagonist
- Any opponent player, especially a hypothetical player for example and didactic purposes. Compare: hero (“the current player”). Let's discuss how to play if you are the chip leader (that is, if you have more chips than all the villains).
- Archaic form of villein (“feudal tenant, peasant, serf”).
Similar: knave, rascal, scamp, cad, antimodel, bad guy, baddie, bastard, beggar, blackguard, bounder, cockatrice, coistril, evildoer, fustilarian, harlot, heavy, lidderon, makeshift, miscreant, ne'er-do-well, niding, nithing, rapscallion, rogue, scab, scapegrace, scoundrel, scum, scumbag · Opposite: hero
verb villains · villaining · villained · villan
- To debase; to degrade .
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: scoundrel, naughty, rogue, rascal, badass, betrayer, scelerat, freak, traitor, culprit, criminal, monster, rabble, enemy, hoodlum, foe
noun
Similar: knave, rascal, scamp, cad, antimodel, bad guy, baddie, bastard, beggar, blackguard, bounder, cockatrice, coistril, evildoer, fustilarian, harlot, heavy, lidderon, makeshift, miscreant, ne'er-do-well, niding, nithing, rapscallion, rogue, scab, scapegrace, scoundrel, scum, scumbag · Opposite: hero
Translations
Every language
noun bad person in a stage or screen play
| Español | villano |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 악역 agyeok, 악당 akdang |
| 日本語 | 悪役 akuyaku |
| 中文 | 惡棍角色 /恶棍角色 ègùn juésè, 奸角 jiānjiǎo, 反派 fǎnpài |
| हिन्दी | खलनायक khalnāyak |
| Kiswahili | mhalifu |
| Português | vilão |
| Français | méchant |
| Deutsch | Bösewicht, (fam) Oberböse, Schurke |
| Italiano | il cattivo |
| Ελληνικά | κακός kakós, εχθρός echthrós |
| Română | spirit rău, viclean, răufăcător |
| Русский | злоде́й zlodéj, отрица́тельный геро́й otricátelʹnyj gerój |
| Tiếng Việt | nhân vật phản diện |
| العربية | شِرِّير širrīr |
| עברית | נָבָל navál |
noun scoundrel
| Español | villano |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 악인 agin, 악당 akdang, 악한 akhan |
| 日本語 | 悪人 akunin, 悪党 akutō, 悪漢 akkan |
| 中文 | 惡棍 /恶棍 ègùn, 坏家伙 huàijiāhuo, 壞蛋 /坏蛋 huàidàn, 無籟 /无籁 wúlài, 渾蛋 /浑蛋 húndàn, 流氓 liúmáng |
| हिन्दी | खलनायक khalnāyak |
| Kiswahili | mhalifu |
| Português | vilão, salafrário, patife |
| Français | scélérat |
| Deutsch | Schurke, Gauner, Halunke |
| Italiano | canaglia, furfante, mascalzone, farabutto, criminale, scellerato |
| Ελληνικά | παλιάνθρωπος paliánthropos, κάθαρμα kátharma |
| Română | mișel, ticălos |
| Русский | злоде́й zlodéj, негодя́й negodjáj, мерза́вец merzávec, подле́ц podléc, лиходе́й lixodéj |
| Tiếng Việt | kẻ tàn ác |
| العربية | شِرِّير širrīr |
| עברית | נָבָל navál |
Talk about this word "villain." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/villain. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. villain. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/villain "villain." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/villain.Cite this
@misc{villain_2026,
title = {villain},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/villain},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
