What does unlawful mean?
Unlawful means (law) Prohibited; not permitted by law (either civil or criminal law; see illegal).
Unlawful
Pronunciation varies by accent · adjective
Meaning
(law) Prohibited; not permitted by law (either civil or criminal law; see illegal).
Example Sentences
He was charged with unlawful use of a car.
That year a U.S. appeals court found the program Snowden had exposed was unlawful and that the U.S. intelligence leaders who publicly defended it were not telling the truth.
Synonyms for unlawful
Antonyms for unlawful
Related Words
Word Forms
- more unlawful
- most unlawful
Usage Notes
Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.
Practice and Learn More
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a synonym for unlawful?
Common synonyms include crimeful, criminal, illegal, illegitimate.
What is the opposite of unlawful?
Possible antonyms include lawful.
How do you use unlawful in a sentence?
He was charged with unlawful use of a car.
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.