murderer

noun

mur·​der·​er ˈmər-dər-ər 

: one who murders

especially : one who commits the crime of murder

Synonyms

• assassin
• cutthroat
• homicide
• killer
• manslayer

Examples of murderer in a Sentence

the murderer was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole

Recent Examples on the Web

Now, while media and fans are all crunching the numbers and trying to predict who will die and who their murderer is in Season 3, several people involved with the series are effectively telling audiences to brace themselves for something big in the finale, which will run 90 minutes. —Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025

Look at this week’s murderer, Freya Frostad (Mary-Louise Parker) — she’s built an entire career and life on the belief that one only needs 44 things in this life. —Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2025

There tends to be a bit of pitch-black comedy wrapped up in its deaths (see: Tanya toppling to her death after escaping her would-be murderers in season 2). —Randall Colburn, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2025

The alleged murderer is at the center of Netflix’s true crime docuseries, Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer, premiering March 31, which delves into one of Long Island’s most infamous cases. —Kelsey Lentz, People.com, 30 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing murderer

• mass murderer

Legal Definition

murderer

noun

mur·​der·​er ˈmər-dər-ər 

: a person who commits murder