unlawful

C2+ Topic:Law & Government

US /ʌnˈlɔfəl/ UK /ʌnˈlɔːfʊl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
not permitted by law; illegal

The court ruled the search to be unlawful.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · not permitted by law; illegal illegal illicit illegitimate criminal prohibited forbidden

Opposites

lawful legal legitimate permitted

Word family

Derived forms unlawfully unlawfulness

Related forms law lawful lawless

Common collocations

Etymology

From Old English unlagu/unlaghful, from un- ('not') + lawful, from law (Old English lagu 'law, ordinance', from Old Norse lag 'something laid down') + -ful.

un- Old English lagu Old English lag Old Norse

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Law & Government Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# unlawful

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ʌnˈlɔfəl/
**IPA (UK):** /ʌnˈlɔːfʊl/

## Meanings
1. not permitted by law; illegal

## Examples
- The court ruled the search to be unlawful.

## Synonyms
- illegal
- illicit
- illegitimate
- criminal
- prohibited
- forbidden

## Antonyms
- lawful
- legal
- legitimate
- permitted

## Derived Forms
- unlawfully
- unlawfulness

## Related Forms
- law
- lawful
- lawless

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: un-
- Root: lagu
- Root: lag

## Etymology
From Old English unlagu/unlaghful, from un- ('not') + lawful, from law (Old English lagu 'law, ordinance', from Old Norse lag 'something laid down') + -ful.

## AI Etymology
Unlawful comes from Old English unlagu/unlaghful, from un- ('not') + lawful, from law (Old English lagu 'law, ordinance', from Old Norse lag 'something laid down') + -ful. The prefix changes the base's direction, polarity, or scope, while the suffix fixes the word's final grammatical role. As an adjective, it carries the sense "not permitted by law; illegal", with the older formation still helping explain the modern use. Relevant historical forms include Old English un-, Old English lagu, and Old Norse lag. Derivative forms include unlawfully, unlawfulness; related words include law, lawful, lawless.

## Topics
- Law & Government
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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