villain
- 01 B1 Intermediate
the 'bad guy' in a book, film, or play who works against the hero.
a character in a fictional narrative whose evil actions or motives are important to the plot.
Simple“The villain in the movie was much more interesting than the hero.”
In context“Modern screenwriters often attempt to humanise the villain by providing a complex backstory that explains their descent into criminality.”
Synonymsantagonistbad guyAntonyms - 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
a person who does very bad or cruel things in real life.
a person who is guilty or capable of great wickedness or a crime.
Simple“The newspapers described the thief as a heartless villain.”
In context“History has often cast him as a villain, though recent biographies suggest his motives were more political than purely malicious.”
- 03 C2 Proficiency
a poor person who worked on a lord's land in the Middle Ages.
a feudal tenant entirely subject to a lord or manor to whom they paid dues and services.
Simple“The villain worked the fields from dawn until dusk for his master.”
In context“The legal status of the medieval villain was complex, as they were technically free in relation to everyone except their own lord.”
UsageOften spelled 'villein' in modern historical texts to distinguish it from the sense of a wicked person who is evil.
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.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.