A villain (masculine), or villainess (feminine), also bad guy, baddy or baddie (sometimes known as a "black hat"), [1] is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction.

The meaning of VILLAIN is a character in a story or play who opposes the hero. How to use villain in a sentence.

VILLAIN definition: 1. a bad person who harms other people or breaks the law: 2. a criminal: 3. a character in a…. Learn more.

VILLAIN definition: a cruelly malicious person who is involved in or devoted to wickedness or crime; scoundrel. See examples of villain used in a sentence.

Villains Wiki is a wiki about villains in pop culture, video games, comic books, movies, animation and other media, including Magneto, The Joker, and Disney villains.

Feb 12, 2026 · Noun villain (plural villains) (Can we clean up (+) this sense?) A vile, wicked person.

villain, n. meanings, etymology, pronunciation and more in the Oxford English Dictionary

Jan 28, 2025 · A villain is an evil or wicked character that enacts evil actions, often with a justification in line with their own principles.

villain (ˈvɪlən) n 1. a wicked or malevolent person 2. (in a novel, play, film, etc) the main evil character and antagonist to the hero

And for readers, knowing what kind of villain they face prepares them for the turmoil that’s about to happen. Here are the most common archetypes of villains you can find in novels, movies, TV shows, …