CRIMINAL

[adjective]a criminal act/offencecriminal behavioura criminal investigationIt's criminal to charge so much for a book.The way we waste this planet's resources is criminal (= morally wrong).Punishing people is the job of the criminal courts (= law courts which deal with criminal law).The man was found guilty of causing criminal damage (= serious damage which is against the law) in a fight in a wine bar.Fraud is dealt with under criminal law (= law which deals with the breaking of a country's laws), while non-payment of tax is covered by civil law.People with a criminal record (= an official record of having previously committed crimes) sometimes find it hard to find work.The criminal justice system is the process by which people who are accused of crimes are judged in court.