disreputables
Those of ill-fame
Disreputables are people considered socially unacceptable or morally suspect—criminals, vagrants, swindlers, and others who operate outside respectable society.
The term often carries a hint of colorful roguishness: The bar attracted gamblers, drunks, and assorted disreputables.
It can also describe disreputable things generally, though the human sense dominates.
Dishonest or deviant individuals
- rascalsMischievous troublemakers
- miscreantsWrongdoers or lawbreakers
- villainsEvil characters in narratives
- knavesDeceitful, unscrupulous men
ne'er-do-wells · cads · blackguards · reprobates · wastrels · delinquents · troublemakers · hellions
Socially rejected individuals
- exilesBanished persons
- rejectsRefuses or discards
- misfitsThose who don't belong
- undesirablesUnwanted or objectionable persons
castoffs · untouchables · lepers · ostracized · banished · shunned · blacklisted · marginalized
Those who defraud through deception
- charlatansPretenders to special knowledge
- fraudstersPeople who deceive for gain
- trickstersThose who mislead deliberately
- impostorsThose falsely claiming identity
hustlers · cheats · scammers · grifters · mountebanks · flimflammers · quacks · embezzlers
Having a terrible reputation
- scandal-plaguedBeset by public controversies
- disgracedBrought into shame
- taintedContaminated, made impure
- sulliedMade morally unclean
besmirched · compromised · exposed · discredited · ruined · shameful · disgraceful · ignominious
Disreputable or sun-blocked
- clandestineConcealed from authorities
- illicitProhibited by law
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
- black marketIllicit trading system
syndicate · cartel · mafia · yakuza · triad · organized crime · racketeering · vice
rogues
Dishonest or deviant individuals
- rascalsMischievous troublemakers
- miscreantsWrongdoers or lawbreakers
- villainsEvil characters in narratives
knaves · ne'er-do-wells · cads · blackguards · reprobates · wastrels · delinquents · troublemakers · hellions · ruffians
pariahs
Socially rejected individuals
undesirables · castoffs · untouchables · lepers · ostracized · banished · shunned · blacklisted · marginalized · outcasted
conmen
Those who defraud through deception
- charlatansPretenders to special knowledge
- fraudstersPeople who deceive for gain
- trickstersThose who mislead deliberately
impostors · hustlers · cheats · scammers · grifters · mountebanks · flimflammers · quacks · embezzlers · deceivers
infamous
Having a terrible reputation
- scandal-plaguedBeset by public controversies
- disgracedBrought into shame
- taintedContaminated, made impure
sullied · besmirched · compromised · exposed · discredited · ruined · shameful · disgraceful · ignominious · dishonored
shady
Disreputable or sun-blocked
- clandestineConcealed from authorities
- illicitProhibited by law
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
black market · syndicate · cartel · mafia · yakuza · triad · organized crime · racketeering · vice · contraband
gangster
Criminal organization member
felon · convict · kingpin · mafioso · pirate · smuggler · bandit · trafficker · racketeer · thug
disreputablesrespectables
Socially approved persons
notables · dignitaries · worthies · luminaries · eminences