unlaw

U1N1L1A1W4

noun

A crime, an illegal action.

Similar
malefactioncrimecriminal offencecriminalitydelinquencyperpetrationunlawfulnessillegalness
Opposite
lawfulnesslegalitylegalness
OriginMiddle English unlawe ← Old English unlagu →
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Meanings

unlaw1

noununlaw (usually uncountable, plural unlaws)

plural unlaws

  1. obsoleteuncountableusuallyA crime, an illegal action.

    Synonyms: malefaction, crime, criminal offence, criminality, delinquency, malefaction, perpetration, unlawfulness

  2. uncountableusuallyAbsence of law; lawlessness.

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

    2012, Read I. Myers, The Great Canadian Oligarchy: Flaws in Our Freedoms

    Synonyms: illegalness, unlawfulness, illegality, illegalness, unlawfulness, lawlessness · Antonyms: lawfulness, lawfulness, legality, legalness

  3. obsoleteuncountableusuallyA fine exacted from a transgressor of the law.

unlaw2

verbunlaw (third-person singular simple present unlaws, present participle unlawing, simple past and past participle unlawed)

present singular third person unlaws · participle present unlawing · participle past unlawed · past unlawed

  1. transitiveTo deprive of the authority or character of law.
  2. transitiveTo put beyond the protection of the law; to outlaw.
  3. obsoletetransitiveScots lawTo fine.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA crime, an illegal action.

Similar
malefactioncrimecriminal offencecriminalitydelinquencymalefactionperpetrationunlawfulness

nounAbsence of law; lawlessness.

Similar
illegalnessunlawfulnessillegalityillegalnessunlawfulnesslawlessness
Opposite
lawfulnesslawfulnesslegalitylegalness
Also see
crimecriminalitycriminal offencedelinquencyillegalityillegalnesslawlessnessmalefactionperpetrationunlawfulness

Origin

unlaw · noun

  1. Old Englishunlagu“violation of law, illegality, injustice, lawlessness”
  2. Middle Englishunlawe
  3. Englishunlaw

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

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →

unlaw · verb

From un- (“reversal, undoing”) + law.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Wulna
Cite this entry
APA

unlaw. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unlaw

MLA

“unlaw.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unlaw. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “unlaw,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unlaw.

Source: unlaw on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.