Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - crime

~ n 1 »CRIME IN GENERAL« illegal activities in general  (We moved here ten years ago because there was very little crime. | crime prevention (=work done to stop crime from happening))  (Neighborhood watch groups have been a very effective means of crime prevention. | serious crime)  (Police need more personnel to tackle serious crime in the inner cities. | crime rate (=the amount of crime in society))  (Voters are becoming frustrated with the growing crime rate. | violent crime)  (a worrying increase in violent crime | petty crime (=crime that is not very serious))  (Kids living on the streets are likely to be involved in petty crime. | crime wave (=a sudden increase in the amount of crime) | turn to crime (=start doing illegal things))  (Rich kids don't generally need to turn to crime. | a life of crime (=a way of living and getting money by doing illegal activities) | white-collar crime (=crimes done by professional people that involve clever and complicated ways of illegally getting money)) 2 »A PARTICULAR CRIME« a dishonest, violent, or immoral action that can be punished by law  (A thirty-four year old man was charged with the crime after the murder weapon was found in his home.) + agains  (Crimes against the elderly are becoming more common.) commit a crime (=do something illegal)  (Most crimes are committed by males under the age of 30. | scene of the crime (=place where a particular crime happened))  (They say a murderer always returns to the scene of the crime.) 3 it's a crime spoken used to say that you think something is completely immoral  (It's a crime to waste all that good food.) 4 crime against humanity a cruel crime against a lot of ordinary people, that is considered unacceptable in any situation, even a war  (The commandant of the prison camp was found guilty of crimes against humanity.) 5 crime of passion a crime, usually murder, that happens as a result of someone's sexual jealousy 6 crime doesn't pay used to say that it is wrong to think that being involved in crime will bring you any advantage, because you will probably be caught and punished for it  (- see also organized crime, partners in crime partner1 (5), war crime, white collar crime white-collar (2))