disorderly conduct

noun

: a petty offense chiefly against public order and decency that falls short of an indictable misdemeanor

Examples of disorderly conduct in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The 24-year-old was detained at the scene and charged with disorderly conduct. —Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2026

Merritt was only charged with disorderly conduct. —Bethy Squires, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2026

That same night, rapper Lil Tjay was arrested in connection with the shooting and was booked into Broward County Jail on a disorderly conduct — affray charge, with bail set at $500. —Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 10 Apr. 2026

Both are charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. —Nick Sullivan april 9, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1786, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for disorderly conduct

• abduct
• construct
• deduct
• destruct
• induct
• instruct
• obstruct
• aqueduct
• deconstruct
• reconstruct
• bucked
• chucked

Legal Definition

disorderly conduct

noun

dis·​or·​der·​ly conduct

: conduct that is likely to lead to a disturbance of the public peace or that offends public decency

also : the petty offense of engaging in disorderly conduct compare breach of the peace

Note: The term disorderly conduct is used in statutes to identify various acts against the public peace. It has been held to include the use of obscene language in public, the blocking of public ways, and the making of threats. A statute must identify acts that constitute disorderly conduct with sufficient clarity in order to avoid being held unconstitutional because of vagueness.