Definition of "true-crime" [true-crime]

• Based on or recounting an actual crime: a true-crime novel. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Yet despite the true-crime gossip and influx of cash-and-flash, names like Phipps, Boardman, Fanjul and Hanley still carry substantial weight."
• "In the gripping title story, Oates boldly reimagines the true-crime story of Andrea Yates, the Texas mother who drowned her children in 2001."
• "Whether it's a novel or a short story, a true-crime tale or 70 years' worth of comic books, the first job is distillation."