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Definition of supervillain

supervillain

/ˈsuː.pɚˌvɪl.ən/
su · per · vil · lain
Plural:supervillains
•
Adjective:supervillainous
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supervillain Lexical Profile

supervillain Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

A fictional villain, especially in comic books, films, or science fiction, who possesses superhuman powers, extraordinary intelligence, or vast resources and acts as the primary adversary to a superhero.

Example

"The movie's plot revolves around a brilliant supervillain who threatens to control the world's weather satellites."

Synonyms
View all synonyms for supervillain
Antonyms
View all antonyms for supervillain

• Nearby Words

superthriller
supertight
superunleaded
supervillain
supervise
supervisee
supervision

Word Origin & Etymology

Coined in mid-20th-century American comic books by combining the prefix 'super-' (from Latin 'super', meaning 'above' or 'beyond') with 'villain' (from Old French 'vilain', originally referring to a feudal serf or peasant before shifting to mean a scoundrel), modeled directly as a counterpart to 'superhero'.

Usage Trend

Historical frequency of usage in published text.

180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Supervillain. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/supervillain
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