recidivist

Noun
Synonyms: repeaterhabitual criminalbacksliderreversionist

WordNet 3.0

Noun (2)

  1. someone who is repeatedly arrested for criminal behavior (especially for the same criminal behavior)Synonyms: repeaterhabitual criminal
  2. someone who lapses into previous undesirable patterns of behaviorSynonyms: backsliderreversionist
Advertisement

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Recidivist \Re*cid"i*vist\ (r[-e]*s[i^]d"[i^]*v[i^]st), n. One who is recidivous or is characterized by recidivism; an incorrigible criminal. -- Re*cid`i*vis"tic (r[-e]*s[i^]d`[i^]*v[i^]s"t[i^]k), a. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

The criminal by passion never becomes a recidivist, it is the social, not the antisocial, instincts that are strong within him, his crime is a solitary event in his life. --Havelock Ellis. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

Advertisement