Felon
/ˈfɛlən/noun
A person convicted of a serious crime, especially one punishable by more than a year in prison.
Did you know?In medieval French, the ancestor of *felon* could mean a cruel or wicked person, and in feudal language it was tied to betrayal and treachery, not just crime.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pel-
“to strike, drive, or push”
Late Latin
Latin
*fallere
“to deceive, trick, or make slip”
Old French
OF
felon
“cruel, wicked, treacherous person”
Middle English
English
feloun
“evil or wicked person; traitor”
Modern English
English
felon
“a person convicted of a serious crime”