illegal
/ɪˈli.ɡəl/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.68 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Contrary to, forbidden, or not authorized by law, especially criminal law.
adj
adj
Totally fictitious, and often issued on behalf of a non-existent territory or country.
Example Sentences
- "This is illegal, you know!"
- "Nearly 40 million people live in UK areas with illegal air pollution"
- "Their illegal mining operations in Asia, Africa and elsewhere, are protected by officials and police paid to look the other way – and powerful customers in the construction industry who prefer not to ask too many questions."
- "In all times the Princes in England have done ſomething illegal to get Money: But then came a Parliament and all was well, the People and the Prince kiſt and were Friends, and ſo things were quiet for a while."
- "Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting."
- "Major parties have long relied on large-scale campaign contributions, and the LDP was only recently mired in an illegal fundraising scandal. Sanseito drew its support from smaller, individual donations."
Etymology
Borrowed from French illégal, from Medieval Latin illegalis, from Latin legalis, by surface analysis, il- + legal. In senses relating to immigration, via clipping of illegal alien or illegal immigrant.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: illegalis, legalis
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɪˈli.ɡəl/
- British English: /ɪˈliːɡəl/
Usage
- Offensive
- American usage
- Obsolete
- Colloquial
Inflected Forms
more illegal (comparative)
illegaler (comparative, informal)
most illegal (superlative)
illegalest (informal, nonstandard)
illegals (plural)