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Glite Dictionary
🕵️ A crime suspect 📭 To stop messages
unsub

unsub

73 9.6
A person thought to have committed a crime who has not been identified
  • noun
  • /ˈʌnˌsʌb/
  • Jargon
translation icon : sospechoso no identificado
  • Because somebody might've seen something that threatened the UnSub with getting caught?
  • the FBI dubbed unsub
  • the unsub killed
  • the unsub's name

Examples

  • Our unsub is a kid.

    Catch Me If You Can (2002)

  • We think the UnSub is targeting these guys on their travels.

    Midnight Show (2016)

  • The UNSUB was apprehended in under 2 minutes without a shot fired.

    Mindhunters (2004)

  • Our unsub's name is Frank Abagnale Jr., age 17.

    Catch Me If You Can (2002)

  • The detectives discovered that the unsub had left behind a crucial piece of evidence at the crime scene.

  • Investigators are trying to identify the unsub responsible for the recent string of thefts in the neighborhood.

  • Witnesses reported seeing a suspicious figure, believed to be the unsub, lurking around the location before the incident.

Synonyms

suspect
vsunsub
∞ 3.4

A person thought to have committed a crime

is an unknown person believed to be involved before identity is known

Surface Forms

unsub singular
unsubs plural

Morphology

unsub = unknown + subject (semi-transparent) = unknown + subject

This is a clipped law-enforcement abbreviation for 'unknown subject'; the source words are recognizable, but the specialized sense 'suspect in a criminal investigation' is not fully predictable.

Etymology

Unsub is police short for un- 'not' and sub from 'subject', a simple way to say an unknown person under investigation. So an unsub is an unidentified suspect the detectives are trying to find.