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Illicit and Elicit
Illicit, while not exactly an everyday word, is far more common than its antonym, licit ("not forbidden by law, permissible"). Perhaps this is a function of our oft-noted fascination with bad behavior and boredom with rectitude. In any case, illicit may be used of behavior that is either unlawful or immoral. These categories frequently overlap, but they are not always synonymous, as some unlawful activities (illicit cigarette smoking) may not be considered immoral, while some immoral activities (an illicit affair) are not illegal. Illicit is occasionally confused with elicit because of the similarity in their pronunciations, but the two words have decidedly different meanings and functions: in contemporary English, elicit is a verb meaning "to get (a response, information, etc.) from someone," while illicit appears solely as an adjective.
Examples of illicit in a Sentence
David Ansen, Newsweek, 4 Mar. 2002
"Thank you, Lieutenant," she said, bowing her head, just as she might in everyday, civilian life, and I felt suddenly illicit in her presence, as though we'd slipped out of sight of our chaperons …
—Chang-rae Lee, A Gesture Life, 1999
The companies that carry cellular … have adopted a number of monitoring techniques to detect illicit calls …
—Paul Wallich, Scientific American, March 1994
He was arrested for selling illicit copies of the software.
She had an illicit affair with her boss.
Trump's Stablecoin Chosen For $2 Billion Abu Dhabi Investment In Binance, Co-Founder Says Thursday,, USA Today, 1 May 2025
The overwhelming majority of illicit vapes are made in China—including mine, which, according to its packaging, was manufactured in Hong Kong.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 30 Apr. 2025
Its own addition to the MCU is Bob (Lewis Pullman, who just has a Bob kind of face), a guy with a history of manic-depression and meth addiction who happened to sign up as a test subject for Valentina’s illicit homegrown superhero program.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2025
Regarding illicit content, parents can activate features that blur not just any nude photos sent to their children, but crucially the ones their children might send.
—John Tamny, Forbes.com, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for illicit
Cite this Entry
“Illicit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illicit. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Legal Definition
illicit
adjective
In re Haas, 48 F.3d 1153 (1995)
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