illegal

See also: illégal and il·legal

English

Etymology

Borrowed from FrenchCategory:English terms borrowed from French#ILLEGALCategory:English terms derived from French#ILLEGAL illégal, from Medieval LatinCategory:English terms derived from Medieval Latin#ILLEGAL illegalis, from LatinCategory:English terms derived from Latin#ILLEGAL legalis, by surface analysis, il- + legalCategory:English terms prefixed with il-#LEGAL. In senses relating to immigration, via clipping of illegal alienCategory:English clippings#ILLEGAL or illegal immigrant.

Pronunciation

Adjective

illegal (comparative more illegal or (nonstandard or informal) illegaler, superlative most illegal or (nonstandard or informal) illegalest)Category:English lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:English adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. Contrary to, forbidden, or not authorized by law, especially criminal law.
    Synonyms: criminal, felonious, illicit, irregular; see also Thesaurus:unlawful
    Antonyms: lawful, legal; see also Thesaurus:lawful
    Nearly 40 million people live in UK areas with illegal air pollutionCategory:English terms with usage examples#ILLEGAL
    Their illegal mining operations in Asia, Africa and elsewhere, are protected by officials and police paid to look the other way – and powerful customers in the construction industry who prefer not to ask too many questions.Category:English terms with usage examples#ILLEGAL
  2. Forbidden by established rules.
    Synonyms: banned, disallowed; see also Thesaurus:forbidden
    Moving a pawn backward is an illegal move in chess.Category:English terms with usage examples#ILLEGAL
    The computer program performed an illegal operation and was terminated.Category:English terms with usage examples#ILLEGAL
  3. (philatelyCategory:en:Philately#ILLEGAL, of an issue printed for collectors) Totally fictitious, and often issued on behalf of a non-existent territory or country.
    Synonym: bogus
  4. (of a person, sometimes offensiveCategory:English offensive terms#ILLEGAL) Being or doing something illegally.
  5. (chiefly USCategory:American English#ILLEGAL, sometimes offensiveCategory:English offensive terms#ILLEGAL) Being an illegal immigrant; residing in a country illegally. (Can we add an example for this sense?)Category:Requests for example sentences in English#ILLEGAL
    Synonym: undocumented

Usage notes

According to Black's Law Dictionary (2nd edition), "illegal" may mean only that something lacks authority of the law or support from law (that is, that it's not legal), not that it's against the law, but that in ordinary usage it means a violation of the law. The "law" however may be a common-law principle rather than a statute.

The use of "illegal" to describe a person rather than an action is often regarded as offensive; see below.[1]

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

illegal (plural illegals)Category:English lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:English nouns#ILLEGALCategory:English countable nouns#ILLEGALCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. (obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#ILLEGAL) An illegal act or technique.
    • c. 1650, John Spalding, The History of the Troubles and Memorable Transactions in Scotland, from the Year 1624 to 1645, volume II, Aberdeen: T. Evans, published 1792, pages 72–73:
      That whatſoever illegals hath been uſed againſt his friends and ſubjects, by impriſoning them without law, or impoſing fines upon their eſtates, be diſclaimed, and that perſons ſo committed be forthwith diſcharged.
      Category:English terms with quotations#ILLEGAL
  2. (colloquialCategory:English colloquialisms#ILLEGAL, in the plural, as illegals) Contraband, esp. illegal substances such as drugs.
  3. (colloquialCategory:English colloquialisms#ILLEGAL, offensiveCategory:English offensive terms#ILLEGAL) An illegal immigrant.
    • 2024 August 1, Josh Halliday, Neha Gohil, “Police in England urged to protect mosques as far right plans more rallies”, in the Guardian:
      In Manchester and in Aldershot in Hampshire, asylum seeker accommodation was targeted by demonstrators carrying placards that read “deport them, don’t support them” and “no apartments for illegals”.
      Category:English terms with quotations#ILLEGAL
  4. (espionageCategory:en:Espionage#ILLEGAL) A spy operating abroad illegally and under non-official cover, without visible ties to his or her country’s authorities.
    • 2012, Christopher Andrew, ‘Colder War’, Literary Review, number 399:
      Anna Chapman, whose glamorous appearance won her more publicity in the Western media than all the other illegals combined, was so successfully deceived by a US sting operation that she handed over her SVR laptop to an FBI agent posing as a Russian.
      Category:English terms with quotations#ILLEGAL
      Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
    • 2022 August 26, Shaun Walker, “Socialite who charmed Nato staff in Naples was Russian spy, say investigators”, in The Guardian:
      Traditionally, illegals have been extremely hard for counterintelligence agencies to find, but in a world of biometric data, facial recognition software and open source investigation possibilities, it has become harder for Russia to keep its illegals below the radar.
      Category:English terms with quotations#ILLEGAL

Usage notes

  • The use of "illegal" to describe a person, rather than an action a person has undertaken, is regarded by some as offensive.[2][3][4] The use of "illegal" as a noun is especially charged.[1]

Synonyms

Translations

References

  1. 1 2 “Archived copy”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), 22 July 2013 (last accessed), archived from the original on 5 June 2013
  2. Charles Garcia (5 July 2012), “Why 'illegal immigrant' is a slur”, in Special to CNN, CNN:
    When you label someone an "illegal alien" or "illegal immigrant" or just plain "illegal," you are effectively saying the individual, as opposed to the actions the person has taken, is unlawful. The terms imply the very existence of an unauthorized migrant in America is criminal. In this country, there is still a presumption of innocence that requires a jury to convict someone of a crime. If you don't pay your taxes, are you an illegal? What if you get a speeding ticket? A murder conviction? No. You're still not an illegal. Even alleged terrorists and child molesters aren't labeled illegals.
  3. Jacob Chamberlain (13 April 2013), “AP Finally Agrees: “No Human Being is Illegal””, in Common Dreams
  4. Steve Padilla and Selene Rivera (3 April 2016), “Library of Congress to stop using term 'illegal alien'”, in Los Angeles Times

Anagrams

Category:en:People#ILLEGALCategory:en:Crime#ILLEGAL

Asturian

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval LatinCategory:Asturian terms borrowed from Medieval Latin#ILLEGALCategory:Asturian terms derived from Medieval Latin#ILLEGAL illēgālis, from LatinCategory:Asturian terms derived from Latin#ILLEGAL lēgālis corresponding to i- + llegalCategory:Asturian terms prefixed with i-#LLEGAL.

Adjective

illegal (epicene, plural illegales)Category:Asturian lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Asturian adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Asturian entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal

Antonyms

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval LatinCategory:Danish terms borrowed from Medieval Latin#ILLEGALCategory:Danish terms derived from Medieval Latin#ILLEGAL illegalis.

Adjective

illegalCategory:Danish lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Danish adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Danish entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal

Inflection

Inflection of illegal
positive comparative superlative
indefinite common singular illegal 2
indefinite neuter singular illegalt 2
plural illegale 2
definite attributive1 illegale

1 When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite,
the corresponding "indefinite" form is used.
2 The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively.

Synonyms

German

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval LatinCategory:German terms borrowed from Medieval Latin#ILLEGALCategory:German terms derived from Medieval Latin#ILLEGAL illegalis.

Pronunciation

Adjective

illegal (strong nominative masculine singular illegaler, not comparable)Category:German lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:German adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:German uncomparable adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:German entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal
    Synonyms: gesetzwidrig, strafbar, ungesetzlich

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

  • illegal” in Duden online
  • illegal”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache (in German)

Occitan

Pronunciation

Adjective

illegal m (feminine singular illegala, masculine plural illegals, feminine plural illegalas)Category:Occitan lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Occitan adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Occitan entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal
    Antonym: legal

Derived terms

Portuguese

Adjective

illegal m or f (plural illegaes)Category:Portuguese lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Portuguese adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Portuguese epicene adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Portuguese entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. pre-reform spelling (used until 1943 in Brazil and 1911 in Portugal) of ilegalCategory:Portuguese forms superseded in 1943#ILLEGALCategory:Portuguese forms superseded in 1911#ILLEGAL

Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from FrenchCategory:Swedish terms borrowed from French#ILLEGALCategory:Swedish terms derived from French#ILLEGAL illégal, from Medieval LatinCategory:Swedish terms derived from Medieval Latin#ILLEGAL illēgālis.

Pronunciation

Adjective

illegal (comparative mer illegal, superlative mest illegal)Category:Swedish lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Swedish adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Swedish entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal
    Synonym: olaglig
    Antonym: legal

Declension

Inflection of illegal
Indefinite positive comparative superlative1
common singular illegal mer illegal mest illegal
neuter singular illegalt mer illegalt mest illegalt
plural illegala mer illegala mest illegala
masculine plural2 illegale mer illegala mest illegala
Definite positive comparative superlative
masculine singular3 illegale mer illegale mest illegale
all illegala mer illegala mest illegala

1 The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
2 Dated or archaic.
3 Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

See also

Further reading

Turkish

Etymology

Orthographic borrowing from FrenchCategory:Turkish terms borrowed from French#ILLEGALCategory:Turkish orthographic borrowings from French#ILLEGALCategory:Turkish terms derived from French#ILLEGAL illégal.

Pronunciation

Adjective

illegalCategory:Turkish lemmas#ILLEGALCategory:Turkish adjectives#ILLEGALCategory:Turkish entries with incorrect language header#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with entries#ILLEGALCategory:Pages with 8 entries#ILLEGAL

  1. illegal
    Synonym: yasa dışı

Derived terms

Further reading

Category:American English Category:Asturian adjectives Category:Asturian lemmas Category:Asturian terms borrowed from Medieval Latin Category:Asturian terms derived from Latin Category:Asturian terms derived from Medieval Latin Category:Asturian terms prefixed with i- Category:Danish adjectives Category:Danish lemmas Category:Danish terms borrowed from Medieval Latin Category:Danish terms derived from Medieval Latin Category:English 3-syllable words Category:English adjectives Category:English clippings Category:English colloquialisms Category:English countable nouns Category:English lemmas Category:English nouns Category:English offensive terms Category:English terms borrowed from French Category:English terms derived from French Category:English terms derived from Latin Category:English terms derived from Medieval Latin Category:English terms prefixed with il- Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation Category:English terms with audio pronunciation Category:English terms with obsolete senses Category:English terms with quotations Category:English terms with usage examples Category:Entries with translation boxes Category:German 3-syllable words Category:German adjectives Category:German lemmas Category:German terms borrowed from Medieval Latin Category:German terms derived from Medieval Latin Category:German terms with IPA pronunciation Category:German terms with audio pronunciation Category:German uncomparable adjectives Category:Occitan adjectives Category:Occitan lemmas Category:Occitan terms with audio pronunciation Category:Pages with 8 entries Category:Pages with entries Category:Portuguese adjectives Category:Portuguese epicene adjectives Category:Portuguese forms superseded in 1911 Category:Portuguese forms superseded in 1943 Category:Portuguese lemmas Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned Category:Requests for example sentences in English Category:Requests for translations into Arabic Category:Requests for translations into Mandarin Category:Requests for translations into Romanian Category:Rhymes:English/iːɡəl Category:Rhymes:English/iːɡəl/3 syllables Category:Swedish adjectives Category:Swedish lemmas Category:Swedish terms borrowed from French Category:Swedish terms derived from French Category:Swedish terms derived from Medieval Latin Category:Swedish terms with audio pronunciation Category:Terms with Albanian translations Category:Terms with Ancient Greek translations Category:Terms with Arabic translations Category:Terms with Armenian translations Category:Terms with Assamese translations Category:Terms with Asturian translations Category:Terms with Azerbaijani translations Category:Terms with Belarusian translations Category:Terms with Bulgarian translations Category:Terms with Catalan translations Category:Terms with Czech translations Category:Terms with Dutch translations Category:Terms with Esperanto translations Category:Terms with Estonian translations Category:Terms with Finnish translations 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Category:Turkish lemmas Category:Turkish orthographic borrowings from French Category:Turkish terms borrowed from French Category:Turkish terms derived from French Category:Turkish terms with IPA pronunciation Category:en:Crime Category:en:Espionage Category:en:People Category:en:Philately