unlawfulness

noun

Definition of unlawfulnessnext
as in illegality

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of unlawfulness In 1697 the Massachusetts General Court ordered a day of fasting and prayer to repent for the unlawfulness of the trials. — Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2026 The appellate panel took issue with jury instructions that implied the mother's lack of consent could satisfy the unlawfulness element under the federal kidnapping statute. — ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026 But in a court-martial, a service member who argues that an order is unlawful has the burden of proving its unlawfulness. — Joshua Kastenberg, The Conversation, 16 Dec. 2025 Many people at Harvard and elsewhere feared that the university would reach a deal with the Administration before Judge Burroughs’s decision, because that would have meant that no court would declare the unlawfulness of the Administration’s actions toward academic institutions. — Jeannie Suk Gersen, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unlawfulness
  1. illegality
  2. criminality
  3. abuse
  4. lawlessness
  5. corruption
Noun
  • The Founders never predicted that a president, his Cabinet, Department of Justice, Supreme Court and Congress would not challenge the blatant illegality that has been happening over the past two years.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2026
  • In an attempt to make the case against him, Pembrock commits a stunning act of illegality that would immediately have the case thrown out of court but at least provides the film a few moments of suspense.
    — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of illegality
Noun
  • Shame, disgust, anger, sadness and confusion equally course through Lucy, who starts wondering about the extent of Philip’s criminality.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
  • His office published statistics showing that the county jails were overwhelmingly filled with undocumented immigrants as proof of their criminality.
    — Michael Kiefer, Washington Post, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of criminality
Noun
  • More recently, it has mostly been associated with abuse of power.
    — Elizabeth Shackelford, Chicago Tribune, 13 Nov. 2026
  • In 2011, former members complained to the archdiocese in Peru's capital, Lima, about abuses by its founder, Luis Figari.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 13 Nov. 2026
Definition of abuse
Noun
  • His killing amplified a narrative of San Francisco spiraling into lawlessness, with high-profile figures such as Elon Musk driving the perception on social media.
    — Senior Editor, CBS News, 10 Nov. 2026
  • People seem to have had it with the reign of corruption and lawlessness.
    — Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of lawlessness
Noun
  • The ArkTrust Task Force, our public corruption task force, brings together federal, state, and local partners to investigate allegations of public corruption and ensure that no one is above the law.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 13 Nov. 2026
  • Its image as a rollicking playpen of vice and corruption emerged in the ‘20s and ‘30s, partly out of screenplays by former Chicago newspaper man Ben Hecht.
    — Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 13 Nov. 2026
Definition of corruption

Browse Nearby Words

unlawful
unlawfulness
unlay
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Unlawfulness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unlawfulness. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All