unlawful

adjective

un·​law·​ful ˌən-ˈlȯ-fəl 

1

: not lawful : illegal

2

: not morally right or conventional

unlawfully

ˌən-ˈlȯ-f(ə-)lē 

adverb

unlawfulness

ˌən-ˈlȯ-fəl-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• criminal
• felonious
• illegal
• illegitimate
• illicit
• lawless
• wrongful

Examples of unlawful in a Sentence

The sale of alcohol to minors is unlawful.

it is unlawful to set off fireworks within the city limits

Recent Examples on the Web

In finding the defendant guilty in this case, the jury necessarily found unanimously that the defendant falsified 34 separate entries in his business records with the intent to defraud, which included an intent to commit or conceal a conspiracy to promote his own election by unlawful means. —Abc News, ABC News, 10 Jan. 2025

Capitol Police identified him Thursday as Adrian J. Hinton, 35, saying he was arrested for unlawful activities. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Fox News, 9 Jan. 2025

The Eleventh Circuit later agreed in a separate case that Notice 2017-10 was unlawful in Green Rock LLC for substantially the same reasons as those found in Mann Construction and Green Valley Investors. —Matthew Roberts, Forbes, 7 Jan. 2025

Appealing to Secretary of the Treasury William Windom, Astor argued that the charges were wrong and that requiring her to pay was unlawful. —Einav Rabinovitch-Fox / Made By History, TIME, 7 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

unlawful

adjective

un·​law·​ful ˌən-ˈlȯ-fəl 

ˈən-

: not lawful : being against the law : illegal

unlawfully

-f(ə-)lē 

adverb

unlawfulness

-fəl-nəs 

noun

Legal Definition

unlawful

adjective

un·​law·​ful

1

: not lawful : not authorized or justified by law

2

: acting contrary to or in defiance of the law

an unlawful possessor

unlawfully adverb

unlawfulness noun