悪者

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: In 悪者 (わるもの), bad 悪 and person 者 combine to denote a villain or bad person.
• Basic usage: 悪者 can mean a bad person or the villain in a story.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Bad person and assigned villain
  • In a construction that makes someone 悪者に, it may describe casting or portraying the person as the villain rather than proving actual wrongdoing.