Definition of 'illegal'
Word forms: plural illegals
1. adjective
If something is illegal, the law says that it is not allowed.
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
Illegal immigrants or workers have travelled into a country or are working without official permission.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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illegal
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Word Frequency
illegal in British English
adjective
2.
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
illegally (ilˈlegally) adverb
illegality (ˌilleˈgality)
noun
Word Frequency
illegal in American English
adjective
1.
prohibited by law; against the law; unlawful; illicit; also, not authorized or sanctioned, as by rules
noun
2.
an alien who has entered a country illegally
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
illegally (ilˈlegally)
adverb
Word Frequency
illegal in American English
(ɪˈliɡəl)
adjective
SYNONYMS 1. unlawful; illegitimate; illicit; unlicensed. illegal, unlawful, illegitimate, illicit, criminal can all describe actions not in accord with law. illegal refers most specifically to violations of statutes or, in organized athletics, codified
rules: an illegal seizure of property; an illegal block (in football). unlawful means not sanctioned by or according to law: an unlawful claim to the inheritance; to take unlawful advantage of the trading situation. illegitimate means lacking legal or traditional right or rights: an illegitimate child; illegitimate use of privileged knowledge. illicit, which originally meant simply “not permitted,” now most often applies to matters
regulated by law with specific emphasis on the way things are carried out: illicit conversion of property; an illicit attempt to control the market. criminal most often refers to violation of the statutes of penal as opposed to civil law.
All felonies are criminal as are all crimes sometimes punishable by death such as
murder, arson, and kidnapping: a criminal act. 1.
forbidden by law or statute
2.
contrary to or forbidden by official rules, regulations, etc
The referee ruled that it was an illegal forward pass
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
illegally adverb
Examples of 'illegal' in a sentence
illegal
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In other languages
illegal
British English: illegal
/ɪˈliːɡl/ ADJECTIVE
If something is illegal, the law says that it is not allowed.
I have done nothing illegal.
- American English: illegal /ɪˈligəl/
- Arabic: غَيْرُ قَانُونِيٌّ
- Brazilian Portuguese: ilegal
- Chinese: 非法的
- Croatian: ilegalan
- Czech: nelegální
- Danish: illegal
- Dutch: illegaal
- European Spanish: ilegal
- Finnish: laiton
- French: illégal
- German: illegal
- Greek: παράνομος
- Italian: illegale
- Japanese: 不法な
- Korean: 불법의
- Norwegian: ulovlig
- Polish: nielegalny
- European Portuguese: ilegal
- Romanian: ilegal
- Russian: незаконный
- Latin American Spanish: ilegal
- Swedish: olaglig
- Thai: ซึ่งผิดกฎหมาย
- Turkish: yasadışı
- Ukrainian: незаконний
- Vietnamese: bất hợp pháp
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Definition of illegal from the Collins English Dictionary
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