gangster
Organized crime figure
A gangster is a member of an organized criminal group.
The term evokes images of prohibition-era mobsters in pinstripe suits, but applies to any era's organized crime figures: The gangsters ran numbers rackets throughout the neighborhood.
In hip-hop culture, gangster (often spelled gangsta) describes a street-tough persona or lifestyle.
As an adjective, gangster can mean impressively bold or ruthless: That was a gangster move.
Male baptismal guardian
- donPut on attire
- kingpinCriminal organization's leader
- bossWorkplace superior
- underbossCriminal organization's deputy
capo · consigliere · lieutenant · enforcer · hitman · soldier · associate · made man
Serious crime perpetrator
- outlawFugitive from justice
- hoodlumViolent young criminal
- crookBent implement or criminal
- racketeerOrganized crime participant
thug · convict · delinquent · fugitive · lawbreaker · offender · perpetrator · wrongdoer
Criminal organization using intimidation
- syndicateCombined group pursuing shared interest
- cartelPrice-fixing coalition
- familyRelated people together
- crewWorking team aboard
outfit · clan · mob · ring · network · brotherhood · faction · posse
Illegal liquor trafficker
- speakeasyIllicit liquor establishment
- moonshineIllegally distilled spirits
- rum-runningIllicit alcohol trafficking
- bathtub ginAmateur-made illegal liquor
Al Capone · Lucky Luciano · Bugsy Siegel · Roaring Twenties · smuggling · roadhouse · Chicago
Soft creased felt hat
- pinstripe suitLined formal business attire
- trench coatBelted, double-breasted raincoat
- getaway carCriminal's flight transportation
- smokyFilled with combustion haze
shadows · nightclub · back alley · hideout · stakeout · double-cross · betrayal · femme fatale
Contractile body tissue
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
- extortionObtaining through threats
- shakedownForceful extraction of payment
- protection racketExtortion through intimidation
threats · menace · fear · strongarm · roughing up · kneecapping · cement shoes · sleeping with the fishes
Japanese criminal organization
- triadGroup of three
- tongHinged grasping implement
- snakeheadCriminal who moves migrants
- narcoDrug trade figure
sicario · organised crime · international · trafficking · smuggling
godfather
Male baptismal guardian
underboss · capo · consigliere · lieutenant · enforcer · hitman · soldier · associate · made man · wiseguy
felon
Serious crime perpetrator
racketeer · thug · convict · delinquent · fugitive · lawbreaker · offender · perpetrator · wrongdoer · miscreant
mafia
Criminal organization using intimidation
- syndicateCombined group pursuing shared interest
- cartelPrice-fixing coalition
- familyRelated people together
crew · outfit · clan · mob · ring · network · brotherhood · faction · posse · operation
bootlegger
Illegal liquor trafficker
- speakeasyIllicit liquor establishment
- moonshineIllegally distilled spirits
- rum-runningIllicit alcohol trafficking
bathtub gin · Al Capone · Lucky Luciano · Bugsy Siegel · Roaring Twenties · smuggling · roadhouse · Chicago
fedora
Soft creased felt hat
- pinstripe suitLined formal business attire
- trench coatBelted, double-breasted raincoat
- getaway carCriminal's flight transportation
smoky · shadows · nightclub · back alley · hideout · stakeout · double-cross · betrayal · femme fatale · hardboiled
muscle
Contractile body tissue
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
- extortionObtaining through threats
- shakedownForceful extraction of payment
protection racket · threats · menace · fear · strongarm · roughing up · kneecapping · cement shoes · sleeping with the fishes · horse head
yakuza
Japanese criminal organization
narco · sicario · organised crime · international · trafficking · smuggling
wiseguy
Sarcastic quipster or mobster
- ratRodent or informer
- snitchOne who tells authorities
- stool pigeonInformant for police
canary · omerta · whack · rub out · ice · clip · pinch · bust · heat · take the fall
- action genresmartial arts, kung fu, spy, western, war films
- criminelsbandit, assassin, pickpocket
- Early 1900sroaring twenties, flapper, jazz, speakeasy, prohibition
- roguesrogue, rogues, scoundrel, scoundrels, rascal
- rule breakersrulebreaker, transgressor, violator, offender, lawbreaker
- British CrimeJack the Ripper, Scotland Yard, Old Bailey, Met Police, Burke and Hare
gangsterpolice officer
Law enforcement agent
cop · law enforcement · detective · FBI agent · sheriff
gangsterhero
One admired for courage
saint · Good Samaritan · philanthropist · humanitarian · do-gooder
- gangster rapHip-hop depicting street crime
- gangsta rapUrban struggle set to beats
- gangsta leanTilted driving posture
- gangster eraPeriod of organized crime dominance
gangsters, gangsta, gangstas, gangsterish, gangsterism, gangsterlike