Collocation Dictionary

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Common collocations with criminal in American Collocation

criminal noun countable

US /ˈkrɪmɪn(ə)l/

committing minor crimes

common
petty
small-time
street

She was a petty criminal who had no respect for the law.

dangerous

dangerous
ruthless
serious
violent

Two-thirds of the convicts were violent criminals.

professional

career
habitual
hardened
persistent
professional
prolific

We’re dealing with hardened criminals, not frightened teenagers.

famous

notorious

The murdered man turns out to be a notorious criminal.

claimed but not proved

alleged
suspected

The police operation rounded up 617 alleged criminals.

offically accused

indicted

Twelve indicted war criminals were sent to The Hague for trial.

found guilty

convicted

The convicted criminals could escape the death penalty by volunteering.

catch a criminal

apprehend
arrest
catch

The three criminals were soon apprehended and subsequently convicted of armed robbery.

try to catch criminals

hunt down
pursue
target

The investigators specifically target criminals who commit vehicle crime.

try to prove a criminal is guilty

bring to justice
prosecute

The government is reformng the laws to bring alleged war criminals to justice.

make a criminal less likely to commit a crime

deter

Country people were improving security to deter criminals.

help a criminal to give up crime

reform
rehabilitate

Short stays in prison do not rehabilitate criminals.