gangster

noun

ˈgaŋ-stər How to pronounce gangster (audio)
Definition of gangsternext
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang Al Capone remains one of the most notorious gangsters in American history

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gangster Pic is a story about a gangster in modern day Chicago, inspired by the repentance story of the fifth-century saint of the same name. — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 11 Mar. 2025 The show stars the Oscar-winning actor as Bumpy Johnson in the midst of a raging Harlem war against Mafia families and a new gangster, Frank Lucas (Rome Flynn), fresh on the scene. — Matt Minton, Variety, 11 Mar. 2025 And Deli Boys distinguishes itself from the glut of gangster stories by situating itself within specific cultures, both Pakistani American and Philadelphian. — Judy Berman, TIME, 6 Mar. 2025 One gangster demanded the contents of the vault in a calm, charismatic voice, but the engraved bullet left on the counter conveyed a threat: There’s a round with Sheriff Bob Baker’s name on it waiting for him. — Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for gangster
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangster
  1. thug
  2. criminal
  3. villain
  4. bandit
  5. assassin
  6. mobster
Noun
  • Jewish people in the U.S. have adopted a position of ‘support Netanyahu and his thugs irrespective of the political cost’ approach.
    — Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 14 Mar. 2025
  • The thug in the seat next to him had 14 prior arrests and went by the name of killer.
    — NPR, NPR, 5 Mar. 2025
Definition of thug
Noun
  • The film follows an American student (Seberg) in Paris who loves a dangerous criminal (Belmondo) obsessed with Humphrey Bogart.
    — Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 20 Mar. 2025
  • The company entices the criminal to click on a tracking link, which provides information about their location.
    — Rachel Hale, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of criminal
Noun
  • In Lynch’s festering neo-noir mystery from 1987, Hopper plays a chronic villain perpetually sipping from a tank of amyl nitrate and handing out hits as a way to manipulate his henchmen.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 14 Mar. 2025
  • Quinn is such a mustache-twirling villain throughout that his interactions with Reacher feel overly cartoonish.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of villain
Noun
  • Matt Dillon as Bob Hughes, lead junkie bandit of Drugstore Cowboy would also slot right in now, as would the late River Phoenix as conflicted hustler Mike Waters in Idaho.
    — Matt Thompson, SPIN, 3 Feb. 2025
  • Want to try and take on a bandit camp but don’t want to risk dying?
    — George Yang, Rolling Stone, 3 Feb. 2025
Definition of bandit
Noun
  • Reeves is John Wick, but that doesn't mean that the world that is currently being built around the famed assassin doesn't have others that could act as de facto John Wick.
    — Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 12 Mar. 2025
  • In his presentation on Monday, Hochman drew a parallel between the Menendez case and the case of Sirhan Sirhan, the assassin of Robert Kennedy.
    — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of assassin
Noun
  • Gambon plays a mobster who takes over a restaurant while his wife’s affections wander elsewhere.
    — Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2025
  • Inside you there are two mobsters, and Robert De Niro plays both.
    — Gregory Nussen, Deadline, 21 Mar. 2025
Definition of mobster

Browse Nearby Words

gangstas
gangster
gangsterism
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gangster.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangster. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on gangster

Nglish: Translation of gangster for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All