Unlaw

noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A crime, an illegal action. obsolete, uncountable, usually
  2. 2
    Absence of law; lawlessness. uncountable, usually

    "In regard to abortion we are now lawless. The law of the land is no law at all; that is, unlaw reigns."

  3. 3
    A fine exacted from a transgressor of the law. obsolete, uncountable, usually
Verb
  1. 1
    To deprive of the authority or character of law. transitive
  2. 2
    To put beyond the protection of the law; to outlaw. transitive
  3. 3
    To fine. obsolete, transitive

Synonyms

All synonyms
unlawfulnesscrimecriminal offencecriminalitydelinquencyillegality

Example

More examples

"In regard to abortion we are now lawless. The law of the land is no law at all; that is, unlaw reigns."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English unlawe, unlaȝ, unlage, from Old English unlagu (“violation of law, illegality, injustice, lawlessness”), equivalent to un- (“lack or absence of”) + law.

Etymology 2

From un- (“reversal, undoing”) + law.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.