Are they synonyms

Criminal and offender are pretty much the same. An outlaw is someone living 'outside of the law'. Historically someone being sought for allegedly having committed one or more crimes.

A criminal is someone who has committed a crime.
An offender is someone who has committed an offense.

Some offenses are crimes, but some are not.
eg Murder is a crime.
eg Parking without putting money in the parking meter is not a crime.

This is an American differentiation, which does not exist in all other countries.

The three mean essentially the same thing, a person who flouts the law, but the usage is typically different. For example:

"He's a criminal. Don't associate with him." ("Outlaw" cannot be used here unless this is in a Western or, for example, in Europe before around 1700. "Offender" cannot be used here.)

"He's an outlaw and can't be trusted." (This would be used in a histor

No. "Outlaw" could not replace "criminal" or "offender."

Outlaw - a person who has broken the law, especially one who remains at large or is a fugitive.


Criminal - a person who has committed a crime.


Offender - a person who commits an illegal act.


Outlaw usually denotes a person who is a fugitive (runs away from the law, not a person who is in jai

Are you saying that a person who commits a crime has not broken the law?
Or a person who commits an illegal act has not committed a crime?

Your logic escapes me.

An outlaw may not have committed any other crime, but is evading a trial by living outside of the law.

Vic ZAn outlaw may not have committed any other crime,

Robin Hood was a famous outlaw.
Bonnie and Clyde were infamous outlaws.