as in villain
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person
some scoundrel stole my wallet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scoundrel
Is Jim Ellis a live-fast, die-young scoundrel or just a mostly pretty nice guy with a heart of gold who just happens to be working for the mob?
—
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 25 May 2025
Like a Dickensian Andy Capp, Johnson is an uber-charming rogue, an everyman bluesy belter whose winking humor with a hint of the scoundrel are not entirely unlike Scott’s demeanor, though each man’s vocals, inflection and stage presence are/were clearly their own.
—Katherine Turman, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2025
In the first, Trump treated a moral hero as an ungrateful scoundrel.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 27 Apr. 2025
That edge is somewhat novel in Star Wars’s universe of smugglers, which typically feels bifurcated between scoundrels with a heart of gold and petty criminals who are rarely more than their base nature.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 22 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scoundrel
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 25 May 2025
Like a Dickensian Andy Capp, Johnson is an uber-charming rogue, an everyman bluesy belter whose winking humor with a hint of the scoundrel are not entirely unlike Scott’s demeanor, though each man’s vocals, inflection and stage presence are/were clearly their own.
—Katherine Turman, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2025
In the first, Trump treated a moral hero as an ungrateful scoundrel.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 27 Apr. 2025
That edge is somewhat novel in Star Wars’s universe of smugglers, which typically feels bifurcated between scoundrels with a heart of gold and petty criminals who are rarely more than their base nature.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 22 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scoundrel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scoundrel
Noun
-
The film is currently filming in London with Joe and Anthony Russo, the directors behind the highest-grossing MCU movies ever, back behind the camera; Downey now playing the chief villain; and a slew of stars from the lost era of Fox's X-Men movies reprising their roles for the first time in years.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
24 July 2025
-
In 1994, Hogan joined WCW and reinvented himself as a villain, forming the New World Order (nWo) and ushering in a new era of edgy storytelling.—
Hannah Parry
Amanda Castro
Joshua Rhett Miller,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 July 2025
Noun
-
King's polo playing husband, Bill Mitchell — who went on to become a director for Texaco — became the model for Daisy’s rich brute of a husband, Tom Buchanan.—
Jordan Runtagh,
People.com,
5 June 2025
-
This freshly re-imagined Jag is worlds apart from that old German brute, but was similar in the sense of feeling wonderfully light and responsive, and utilizing hydraulic fluid to power its steering.—
Peter Nelson,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2025
Noun
-
Often regarded by historians as a collection of savage tribes, the Scythians emerge as a pivotal force of the ancient world in this monumental history.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
30 Jan. 2023
-
Nearly 32 years ago, Rodney King’s savage beating by police in Los Angeles prompted heartfelt calls for change.—
Aaron Morrison, Claudia Lauer and Adrian Sainz,
Anchorage Daily News,
29 Jan. 2023
Noun
-
The two-day family-friendly affair has a lineup of exciting events, including a chili cook-off and a monster lake plunge, plus the chance to try your hand at cross-country skiing, tubing, or snowmobiling at Beaver Creek Lodge in Garden City.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
13 July 2025
-
The enormous bones and monster jaws, the ridged backs and barbed tails.—
Clare Sestanovich,
New Yorker,
13 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scoundrel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scoundrel. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share