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 charges against those arrested include assault on a police officer, weapon possession, criminal mischief, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and obstruction of governmental administration, cops said. —Kerry Burke, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026

Charges included assault on a police officer, criminal possession of a weapon (gun), disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and more. —Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 14 June 2026

In all, 63 people were arrested, with charges including assault on a police officer, criminal possession of a weapon, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. —Michael R. Sisak, Los Angeles Times, 14 June 2026

He was charged with felony disorderly conduct and detained for eight days at a juvenile facility in Kane County. —Rebecca Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 13 June 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.