true crime

noun

: a nonfiction genre of literature, film, podcasts, etc. that depicts and examines real crime cases

Fans of true crime will enjoy this collection of tales from the annals of American justice …—

Jennifer Moore

—usually used before another noun

a true crime podcast/documentary/novel

In each episode, legal and criminal justice experts give you the inside scoop on the most shocking true crime stories … to hit the news.—

LeeAnn Huntoon

As true crime podcasts, TV shows, books and online content continue to prove popular, cases never truly fade from the spotlight.—

Bethany Bruner

Examples of true crime in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Because of the strict gag order and lack of filmed content, true crime enthusiasts on TikTok who post about the case have begun compiling information from both reputable and unchecked sources. —

Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 25 Oct. 2024 Netflix's new true crime thriller Woman of the Hour might be based on a true story, but how many of the characters are actually based on real-life people? Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut charts the 1978 appearance of serial killer Rodney Alcala on The Dating Game. —

Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 25 Oct. 2024 The unsolved mystery of the identity of the Zodiac Killer has captivated the true crime world for decades. —

Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024 As a result, the tours don’t always attract thrill seekers, but people interested in the supernatural, history buffs, true crime fanatics, families and even skeptics, Ironside said. —

N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA TODAY, 24 Oct. 2024 BritBox has inked a wide-ranging North American 20-hour content deal with Sphere Abacus for a range of titles including non-fiction, true crime, entertainment and drama. —

K.j. Yossman, Variety, 21 Oct. 2024 Clark’s name isn’t very familiar even to committed true crime aficionados, and that’s probably because his story is so vast, complex, and frankly insane. —

Kelly Goodner, IndieWire, 19 Oct. 2024 But dramatizations of true crime and recent history have become his brand. —

Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2024 After a century unsolved, the Villisca axe murders have become the stuff of ghost tour fodder — the type of local legend in a small Midwestern community that gives children nightmares and inspires true crime sleuths to try to find the missing pieces of the puzzle. —

Sean Neumann, People.com, 13 Oct. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'true crime.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.