Translation guide
How to refer to a person who has committed an offense, crime, or wrongdoing in Japanese, depending on context, formality, and legal status.
Referring to someone who has committed a crime, especially in legal or formal contexts.
The most direct and common term for a criminal or offender in legal and general contexts.
He was arrested as an offender.
Refers to the perpetrator or culprit of a specific crime. Often used in news or police contexts.
The offender hasn't been caught yet.
A more literary or old-fashioned term for a sinner or criminal. Can carry moral or religious connotations.
He was judged as an offender.
Referring to someone who violates rules, norms, or causes trouble, not necessarily a criminal.
Used for someone who breaks rules, regulations, or laws, such as traffic violations or school rules.
Traffic offenders must pay a fine.
Specifically the perpetrator or offender in a context of harm or damage, such as bullying or accidents. Contrasts with 被害者 (victim).
Colloquial term for a bad person or villain. Can be used for an offender in a non-legal, moral sense, often in stories or casual speech.
Referring to someone who repeatedly commits offenses.
Referring specifically to a person who has committed a sexual offense.
Standard term for a sex offender. Used in legal, news, and formal contexts.
A sex offender lives in that area.
Referring to someone who has committed an offense for the first time.
A first-time offender. Often used in legal contexts when discussing sentencing.
Because he's a first-time offender, he got a suspended sentence.
犯罪者 (はんざいしゃ) is a general term for a criminal or offender, while 犯人 (はんにん) specifically refers to the perpetrator of a particular crime. Use 犯人 when talking about 'who did it' in a specific incident.
The police are looking for the offender (culprit).
He is a criminal, but not the offender in this case.
In English, 'offender' can be used lightly (e.g., 'parking offender'). In Japanese, directly translating to 犯罪者 may sound too strong. Use 違反者 for rule violations, or rephrase with a verb like 違反する.
I was a parking offender. (lit. I committed a parking violation.)
いじめの加害者は特定された。
The offenders in the bullying case were identified.
あの話では、彼が悪者だ。
In that story, he's the offender.
累犯者に対する刑罰は重くなる。
Penalties become harsher for repeat offenders.