Synonyms for illicit
- adjective
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Illegal — unlawful
illegal, unlawful, illegitimate, outlawed, criminal, unlicensed, unlicenced UK, wrongful, sharp
2. Forbidden — not approved by law, but not invalid
forbidden, prohibited, banned, impermissible, verboten, disallowed, unallowed, proscribed, nonlicet dated rare
3. Improper — breaking social norms
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Not approved by law, but not invalid.
The bigamous marriage, while illicit, was not invalid.
- adj. 2
Breaking social norms.
- adj. 3
Unlawful.
Related words
- Word family
- illicitly illicitness
Example sentences
- illegal Do you think that handguns should be made illegal?
- unlawful You have a duty not to comply with an unlawful order.
- illegitimate The king had numerous illegitimate children with her.
- outlawed The Bolsheviks outlawed unions and strikes.
- prohibited An accident prohibited his attending the ceremony.
- forbidden Hunting game is forbidden in these tranquil woods.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| illicit | rising | |
| illegal | steady | |
| unlawful | falling | |
| illegitimate | steady | |
| outlawed | steady | |
| prohibited | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- sharp1
- 6 letters
- banned1
- 7 letters
- illegal3, deviant3
- 8 letters
- criminal3, unlawful3, improper3, wrongful2, outlawed2, verboten3, nonlicet
- 9 letters
- forbidden3, unallowed
- 10 letters
- prohibited4, scandalous3, unlicensed3, disallowed3, contraband3, proscribed2, adulterous4, unlicenced
- 12 letters
- illegitimate5
- 13 letters
- impermissible5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (illegal3 = 3 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- illicite