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

Because Nordquist is a transgender man, his death sent shockwaves through the LGBTQ+ community and sparked fears that his brutal murder could have been a hate crime. —Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2025

Investigators rule out a hate crime: Law enforcement officials in upstate New York said that the torture and killing of Sam Nordquist, a 24-year-old transgender man whose remains were found in a field in upstate New York last week, did not appear to be a hate crime. —James Barron, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025

The attack is not being treated as a hate crime, police said. —Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 19 Feb. 2025

Muhsin Hendricks, known as the world's first openly gay imam, was shot and killed in South Africa over the weekend, as authorities investigate whether the murder was a hate crime. —Andrea Margolis, Fox News, 17 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