villains

Noun

villain (plural villains)

1. A vile, wicked person.
   • Oh moſt pernicious woman! / Oh Villaine, Villaine, ſmiling damned Villaine!c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac...
   1. An extremely depraved person, or one capable or guilty of great crimes.
   2. A deliberate scoundrel.
2. (archaic, derogatory) A low-born, abject person.
   • Note the preſumption of this Scythian ſlaue:
     I tel thee villaine, thoſe that lead my horſe
     Haue to their names tytles of dignitie,
     And dar’ſt thou bluntly cal me Baiazeth?c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC...
3. A character who has the role of being bad, especially antagonizing the hero; an antagonist who is also evil or malevolent.
   • Miss Phyllis Morgan, as the hapless heroine dressed in the shabbiest of clothes, appears in the midst of a gay and giddy throng; she apostrophises all and sundry there, including the villain, and has a magnificent scene which always brings down the house, and nightly adds to her histrionic laurels.1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Affair at the Novelty Theatre”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition...

   Synonyms:

   antagonist

4. Any opponent player, especially a hypothetical player for example and didactic purposes. Compare: hero (“the current player”).
   • Let's discuss how to play if you are the chip leader (that is, if you have more chips than all the villains).

See all 7 meanings of villain