hate crime

noun

: any of various crimes (such as assault or defacement of property) when motivated by hostility to the victim as a member of a group (such as one based on color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation)

Examples of hate crime in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Wolford said prosecutors elected to charge the seven people with first-degree murder — and not hate crimes against a Black transgender man — because that is the heaviest penalty available to them under New York law. —Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 5 Mar. 2025

Her clients have survived everything from hate crimes to electrical fires to moldy food, leaving her wondering why shelters don’t at least get inspected and publicly graded like restaurants. —Calmatters, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2025

More:Israel sends tanks into West Bank for the first time in more than 20 years Former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland launched a federal hate crime investigation into the attack. —Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2025

Friction point: 74% of respondents felt that public officials had taken more action to tackle anti-Asian hate crimes while giving less attention to violence against Black Oaklanders. —Shawna Chen, Axios, 25 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1960, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hate crime

• aforetime
• allozyme
• anytime
• christmastime
• cybercrime
• dinnertime
• guggenheim
• isozyme
• lysozyme
• maritime
• mesenchyme
• overtime

Kids Definition

hate crime

noun

plural hate crimes

: any of various crimes (as assault) when motivated by hostility to the victim based on social characteristics (as color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, or national origin)

Legal Definition

hate crime

noun

: a crime that violates the victim's civil rights and that is motivated by hostility to the victim's race, religion, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender