Definition

Noun: - The girlfriend or female companion of a gangster: A woman who is romantically involved with a male member of a criminal organization or gang. The term often implies she is aware of his criminal activities and may be associated with his lifestyle, but is not necessarily a principal participant in the crimes.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The film noir featured a classic archetype: the tough gangster and his glamorous gangster's moll.
  • She was known in the tabloids as a notorious gangster's moll, always seen at his side during his trial.

Advanced Usage

• The term is strongly associated with the Prohibition and Depression eras in the United States (1920s-1930s), often evoking a specific image of a stylish, sometimes morally ambiguous woman.
• It can be used metaphorically to describe a woman who is complicit with or turns a blind eye to the wrongdoing of a powerful male figure, even in non-criminal contexts.
  • Critics accused her of being the CEO's gangster's moll, willfully ignoring the company's unethical practices.

Variants and Related Words

• Moll (noun): A slang term, now dated, for a gangster's girlfriend or a female companion. "Gangster's moll" is the more specific and common full phrase.
• Gun moll (noun): A more specific historical term for a female gangster or a moll who carries and uses weapons.

Synonyms

• Gangster's girlfriend: A more neutral, modern phrasing.
• Mob girlfriend: A synonym that specifies organized crime.
• Crony (though this is gender-neutral and implies a partner in crime more than a romantic partner).

Related Idioms

• While not a direct idiom, the concept is embedded in phrases like "guilty by association," which can apply to a moll who is implicated due to her relationship with the criminal.

Noun

1. the girlfriend of a gangster