the person in a group of offenders who carries out the main part of a criminal act. If there is more than one principal offender, they are called joint principals.
Synonyms and related words
General words for criminals
criminal
offender
underworld
principal offender
noun countable legal
US /ˌprɪnsəp(ə)l əˈfendər/
Word Forms
singular
principal offender
plural
principal offenders
DEFINITIONS1
1
the person in a group of offenders who carries out the main part of a criminal act. If there is more than one principal offender, they are called joint principals.