罪人(ざいにん)

ざいにん
noun
criminal, sinner, offender
formalwrittenliteraryperson
1. criminal, offender, guilty person
A person who has committed a crime or offense. A somewhat literary or formal term compared to the more common 犯人.
罪人(ざいにん)は処刑(しょけい)された。
The criminal was executed.
江戸(えど)時代(じだい)、罪人(ざいにん)は晒(さら)し者(もの)にされた。
During the Edo period, criminals were put on public display.
裁判(さいばん)で有罪(ゆうざい)となった罪人(ざいにん)が島流(しまなが)しにされた。
Criminals found guilty at trial were banished to remote islands.
2. sinner, wrongdoer
A person who has committed a moral or spiritual transgression. Used in religious contexts and metaphorically to describe someone burdened by guilt.
私(わたし)は罪人(ざいにん)だ。
I am a sinner.
彼(かれ)は自分(じぶん)を罪人(ざいにん)のように感(かん)じていた。
He felt as though he were a sinner.
聖書(せいしょ)には、すべての人間(にんげん)は罪人(ざいにん)であると書(か)かれている。
The Bible states that all humans are sinners.

Usage

More literary and formal than 犯人(はんにん) (culprit) or 犯罪者(はんざいしゃ) (criminal). Frequently appears in historical narratives, religious texts, and literary works. The reading ざいにん is standard; the older reading つみびと is sometimes seen in literary or religious contexts.

Common collocations

  • 罪人(ざいにん)を裁(さば)く: to judge a criminal
  • 罪人(ざいにん)を許(ゆる)す: to forgive a sinner
  • 大(おお)罪人(ざいにん): great sinner, grave offender

Similar words

Related Words

Compare: 犯人(はんにん) (culprit, perpetrator)
Compare: 犯罪者(はんざいしゃ) (criminal)
general
Added 2026.2.27 17:32 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
13500/13984_zainin