1
as in criminal
not restrained by or under the control of legal authority
the lawless rioters were destroying everything in sight
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in illegal
contrary to or forbidden by law
the level of lawless activity in the territory had reached the point where the authorities felt compelled to act
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lawless
Trump's lawless Alien Enemies Act declaration cannot stand.
—
Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Apr. 2025
Tren de Aragua originated in an infamously lawless prison in the central state of Aragua and accompanied an exodus of millions of Venezuelans, the overwhelming majority of whom were seeking better living conditions after their nation’s economy came undone last decade.
—Elliot Spagat, Chicago Tribune, 16 Mar. 2025
Indeed, Americans have historically rejected lawless behavior and, indeed, so have the law breakers some are pointing to.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
Indeed, Americans have historically rejected lawless behavior and, indeed, so have the law breakers some are pointing to.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lawless
Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Apr. 2025
Tren de Aragua originated in an infamously lawless prison in the central state of Aragua and accompanied an exodus of millions of Venezuelans, the overwhelming majority of whom were seeking better living conditions after their nation’s economy came undone last decade.
—Elliot Spagat, Chicago Tribune, 16 Mar. 2025
Indeed, Americans have historically rejected lawless behavior and, indeed, so have the law breakers some are pointing to.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
Indeed, Americans have historically rejected lawless behavior and, indeed, so have the law breakers some are pointing to.
—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lawless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lawless
Adjective
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Finally, get to grips with the fact that this dataset only includes passwords that have become publicly available in criminal forums online.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes.com,
3 May 2025
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Agents were driving down Anderson Road in unmarked cars when Perez-Rodriguez allegedly walked into the roadway holding a machete, according to a criminal complaint.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
3 May 2025
Adjective
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Official fireworks shows took place over the city, and illegal pyrotechnics lit up the sky everywhere in between.—
Lisa Beebe,
Los Angeles Magazine,
5 July 2017
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Louisville police say anything that goes into the air or explodes is illegal for average citizens.—
James Bruggers,
The Courier-Journal,
5 July 2017
Adjective
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That month, Drummond sued the board directly in the Oklahoma Supreme Court and asked it to rescind the charter contract and declare St. Isidore's establishment as a charter school unlawful.—
Melissa Quinn,
CBS News,
29 Apr. 2025
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Of note: Your Content must not be false, defamatory, misleading or hateful, or infringe any copyright or any other third-party rights or otherwise be unlawful.—
Catherine Pearson,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Lesser powers that find themselves under the dominion of a great power against their wishes can be resentful and rebellious.—
Margaret MacMillan,
The Atlantic,
30 Apr. 2025
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In 1978, an ambitious and rebellious young woman, Marina Bulgari, decamped from her family business to branch out with her own jewelry brand.—
Roxanne Robinson,
Forbes.com,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Zhao, who in 2023 stepped down from his role at Binance as part of a $4.3 billion settlement with the U.S. over the illicit finance charges, remains a major shareholder of Binance.—
Trump's stablecoin chosen for $2 billion Abu Dhabi investment in Binance, co-founder says Thursday,,
USA Today,
1 May 2025
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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
Adjective
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Not that the ostensibly placid 1950s that preceded the anarchic ’60s were nirvana in New York’s Theater District.—
Frank Rich,
Vulture,
8 Apr. 2025
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Its table of contents alone is more happily anarchic than most books in their entireties.—
Dwight Garner,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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She has been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon (felonious assault), first-degree vulnerable adult abuse and assault or assault and battery.—
Bailey Richards,
People.com,
28 Apr. 2025
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Jones-Ogletree, who also goes by Darnell Ogletree, is charged with murder, felonious assault and abduction.—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The students who saw messy rooms were more likely to cheat, according to researchers, who cited asymmetry as a hallmark of disorderly spaces.—
Matt Alderton,
USA Today,
3 May 2025
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For added drama, there was a disorderly stampede out of Treasuries and the U.S. dollar , banishing hope and leaving an upside air pocket that was partially filled when buyers seized on the Trump administration’s equivocal feints toward a de-escalation of trade aggressions.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
26 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lawless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lawless. Accessed 11 May. 2025.
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