/ kraɪm; NAmE / noun
1.
[ U ] activities that involve breaking the law :
an increase in violent crime
the fight against crime
Stores spend more and more on crime prevention every year.
petty / serious crime
the connection between drugs and organized crime
He turned to crime when he dropped out of school.
The crime rate is rising.
crime fiction / novels (= stories about crime)
crime figures / statistics
She's a crime writer (= she writes stories about crime).
2.
[ C ] crime (against sb) an illegal act or activity that can be punished by law :
to commit a crime (= do sth illegal)
The massacre was a crime against humanity .
—see also war crime
3.
a crime [ sing. ] an act that you think is immoral or is a big mistake :
It's a crime to waste so much money.
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (in the sense wickedness, sin ): via Old French from Latin crimen judgement, offence, based on cernere to judge.