Link Centre Dictionary

villain

vil·lain

UK/ˈvɪl.ən/ US/ˈvɪl.jən/ fairly common

noun

1.

a wicked or evil person; someone who does evil deliberately

Synonyms
2.

the principle bad character in a film or work of fiction

Synonyms

Origin

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).

Phrases

  • Bond villain
  • chillin' like a villain
  • James Bond villain
  • pantomime villain
  • villain of the week

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.