scofflaw
/ˈskɔfˌlɔ/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.51 in modern English
19
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
a criminal or lawbreaker, especially one who is openly contemptuous or dismissive of current laws or displays conspicuous or outward disrespect, distain, or disregard for the law
noun
One who habitually violates minor laws or fails to answer trivial court summonses (such as parking tickets).
American usage
Example Sentences
- "The scofflaw entered the scoflsloon. He leaned an elbow on the scoffbar and rested a foot on the scoffrail. 'Waddle'y' have?" said the scoffbartender. "A little tea," said the scofflaw."
- "If we are to scour out the scofflaws, we must first remove those particular laws at which nearly everybody scoffs."
- "Within six months, with the full cooperation of police throughout the state, the scofflaw rate was down to 22 per cent."
- "At that time, appellant was informed that because there were unpaid tickets in the amount of $2,725.00, his Datsun had been declared a "scofflaw" car."
- "2001: 10th International Conference on High-Occupancy Vehicle Systems: Compendium of Technical Papers The signage will make it clear that if a motorist is an HOV scofflaw (i.e., violator of the vehicle code driving in the HOV-Only zone) that they will be subject to HOV violation fine of at least $271."
- "Unrepentant scofflaw on the lam Layin' waste to all the best-laid plans"
Etymology
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈskɔfˌlɔ/
Usage
- American usage