lowlife

/ˈləʊ.laɪf/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈloʊ.laɪf/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈlō-ˌlīf/ (ame, mw)

lowlife — noun

  • lowlifesingular
  • lowlifesplural

1. someone who makes a living through crime or dishonest behaviour, and who is rega

1.名詞B2
釋義

someone who makes a living through crime or dishonest behaviour, and who is regarded by others as worthless and immoral

例句

Kwame warned his daughter that the man at the corner store was a known lowlife.

collocation: a known lowlife

The police finally arrested the lowlife who had been stealing from elderly neighbours for months.

同義詞
  • criminal

    more neutral and legal; lowlife carries heavier moral disgust

  • crook

    focuses on dishonesty and scams; lowlife suggests a whole pattern of worthless behaviour

  • scoundrel

    old-fashioned and almost playful; lowlife is harsher and more current

  • villain

    often used for fictional characters; lowlife describes a real person in everyday terms

文法句型

a lowlife

the lowlife (referring to a specific person)

用法筆記

Always derogatory — the word expresses strong moral condemnation of someone's entire way of living, not just one bad act. Frequently used with 'a' as in 'a lowlife' or 'the lowlife' when the referent is already known.

常見錯誤

❌He lost his job, so now he is a lowlife.
✅He was convicted of fraud, and locals called him a lowlife.
💡being unemployed does not make someone a lowlife; the word always implies dishonest or criminal behaviour, not poverty.

2. the people in a community who live by crime or dishonest behaviour, viewed as a

2.名詞C1
釋義

the people in a community who live by crime or dishonest behaviour, viewed as a group rather than as individuals

例句

The new mayor promised to drive the lowlife out of the city centre for good.

collocation: drive the lowlife out

Old-timers said the lowlife had taken over the docks years ago.

同義詞
  • underworld

    refers specifically to organised crime networks; lowlife is broader, covering petty offenders too

  • criminal element

    more formal, used in police or political speech; lowlife is everyday street language

  • riffraff

    focuses on low social standing rather than criminality; lowlife always implies dishonest activity

文法句型

the lowlife

local lowlife

the city's lowlife

用法筆記

Uncountable collective noun that names a whole category of people, not individuals. Always appears with 'the'. Distinguish from sense 1 (DISHONEST PERSON): 'a lowlife' (or 'lowlifes' in plural) refers to one or more individuals; 'the lowlife' treats the group as a mass.

常見錯誤

❌He hangs around with a lowlife.' (intending the collective group)
✅He hangs around with the lowlife around the docks.
💡sense 2 is uncountable; use 'the lowlife' for the group as a whole.
❌The lowlife in this town are getting worse.
✅The lowlife in this town is getting worse.
💡when used as a collective mass noun, treat it as singular.