villainess

noun

vil·​lain·​ess ˈvi-lə-nəs How to pronounce villainess (audio)
Synonyms of villainessnext
: a woman who is a villain

Examples of villainess in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Stone, who was last seen on the big screen as the scene-stealing villainess in Nobody 2, is repped by IAG, The Artists Partnership, Link Entertainment and Brecheen Feldman. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2026 The drama stars Lim Ji-yeon as a dual-souled heroine, a struggling modern actress whose body is suddenly occupied by Kang Dan-shim, a cunning villainess from the Joseon era who fought her way to power. — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 5 June 2026 After all, what would the Bond film franchise be without love interests, sidekicks and, of course, villainesses? — John Russell, PEOPLE, 19 May 2026 The show isn’t necessarily doing anything wildly off book — there are at least three other series about being reincarnated as the villainess in a fantasy story and failing at it. — Kambole Campbell, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for villainess

Word History

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of villainess was in 1586

Rhymes for villainess

See All Rhymes for villainess

Browse Nearby Words

villainage
villainess
villainize
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Villainess.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/villainess. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

villainess

noun
vil·​lain·​ess ˈvil-ə-nəs How to pronounce villainess (audio)
: a woman who is a villain

More from Merriam-Webster on villainess

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for villainess

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of devolve

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All