noun
hood
A criminal or a rough, threatening person.
A hood threatens the shopkeeper and demands money from him.
Etymology
Hood shortens hoodlum, a word for a criminal or rowdy person. It retains the longer word’s threatening or lawless associations.
More examples
- Two hoods block the doorway and threaten anyone who approaches.
- The police arrest a hood who runs an illegal gambling ring.
- The movie's hero refuses to work for a local hood.
Forms
hood · hoods
Similar words
- thug
- Emphasizes violent or intimidating behavior rather than criminal activity generally.
- gangster
- Specifically suggests membership in an organized criminal group.