noun

perpetrator

PUR-pih-trayt-uh

noun

The person who actually carries out a crime or other wrongdoing.

"Investigators are still trying to identify the perpetrator of the fraud."

"The perpetrator was caught on security footage entering the building."

How to Use Perpetrator

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishWhoever actually did the crime.

Common pairings

identify the perpetrator perpetrator of a crime

perpetrators plural

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Investigators are still trying to identify the _____ of the fraud.

From Latin perpetrator, someone who "carries something through" or accomplishes an act — from per- ("thoroughly") + patrare ("to bring about").

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