law

¹

[ law ]

noun

1. the principles and regulations established in a community by some authority and applicable to its people, whether in the form of legislation or of custom and policies recognized and enforced by judicial decision.
2. any written or positive rule or collection of rules prescribed under the authority of the state or nation, as by the people in its constitution. Compare bylaw, statutory law.
3. the controlling influence of such rules; the condition of society brought about by their observance:

   maintaining law and order.

4. a system or collection of such rules.
5. the department of knowledge concerned with these rules; jurisprudence:

   to study law.

6. the body of such rules concerned with a particular subject or derived from a particular source:

   commercial law.

7. an act of the supreme legislative body of a state or nation, as distinguished from the constitution.
8. the principles applied in the courts of common law, as distinguished from equity.
9. the profession that deals with law and legal procedure:

   to practice law.

10. legal action; litigation:

    to go to law.

11. a person, group, or agency acting officially to enforce the law:

    The law arrived at the scene soon after the alarm went off.

12. any rule or injunction that must be obeyed:

    Having a nourishing breakfast was an absolute law in our household.

13. a rule or principle of proper conduct sanctioned by conscience, concepts of natural justice, or the will of a deity:

    a moral law.

14. a rule or manner of behavior that is instinctive or spontaneous:

    the law of self-preservation.

15. (in philosophy, science, etc.)
    1. a statement of a relation or sequence of phenomena invariable under the same conditions.
    2. a mathematical rule.
16. a principle based on the predictable consequences of an act, condition, etc.:

    the law of supply and demand.

17. a rule, principle, or convention regarded as governing the structure or the relationship of an element in the structure of something, as of a language or work of art:

    the laws of playwriting;

    the laws of grammar.

18. a commandment or a revelation from God.
19. Sometimes Law. a divinely appointed order or system.
20. the Law. Law of Moses.
21. the preceptive part of the Bible, especially of the New Testament, in contradistinction to its promises:

    the law of Christ.

22. British Sports. an allowance of time or distance given a quarry or competitor in a race, as the head start given a fox before the hounds are set after it.

verb (used with object)

1. Chiefly Dialect. to sue or prosecute.
2. British. (formerly) to expeditate (an animal).

law

²

[ law ]

adjective

, Obsolete.

1. an obsolete variant of low ¹.

law

³

[ law ]

verb (used with or without object)

, Obsolete.

1. an obsolete variant of low ².

law

⁴

[ law ]

interjection

, Older Use.

1. (used as an exclamation expressing astonishment.)

Law

⁵

[ law ]

noun

1. Andrew Bon·ar [bon, -er], 1858–1923, English statesman, born in Canada: prime minister 1922–23.
2. John, 1671–1729, Scottish financier.
3. William, 1686–1761, English clergyman and devotional writer.

law

¹

/ lɔː /

adjective

1. a Scot word for low 1

law

²

/ lɔː /

noun

1. a hill, esp one rounded in shape

law

³

/ lɔː /

noun

1. a rule or set of rules, enforceable by the courts, regulating the government of a state, the relationship between the organs of government and the subjects of the state, and the relationship or conduct of subjects towards each other
2. 1. a rule or body of rules made by the legislature See statute law
   2. a rule or body of rules made by a municipal or other authority See bylaw
3. 1. the condition and control enforced by such rules
   2. ( in combination )

      lawcourt

4. a rule of conduct

   a law of etiquette

5. one of a set of rules governing a particular field of activity

   the laws of tennis

6. the law
   1. the legal or judicial system
   2. the profession or practice of law
   3. the police or a policeman
7. a binding force or statement

   his word is law

8. Also calledlaw of nature a generalization based on a recurring fact or event
9. the science or knowledge of law; jurisprudence
10. the principles originating and formerly applied only in courts of common law Compare equity
11. a general principle, formula, or rule describing a phenomenon in mathematics, science, philosophy, etc

    the laws of thermodynamics

12. the Law
    capital Judaism
    1. short for Law of Moses
    2. the English term for Torah See also Oral Law Written Law
13. a law unto itself or a law unto himself
    a person or thing that is outside established laws
14. go to law
    to resort to legal proceedings on some matter
15. lay down the law
    to speak in an authoritative or dogmatic manner
16. reading the Law or reading of the Law
    Judaism that part of the morning service on Sabbaths, festivals, and Mondays and Thursdays during which a passage is read from the Torah scrolls
17. take the law into one's own hands
    to ignore or bypass the law when redressing a grievance

Law

⁴

/ lɔː /

noun

1. LawAndrew Bonar18581923MBritishCanadianPOLITICS: statesmanPOLITICS: prime minister Andrew Bonar (ˈbɒnə). 1858–1923, British Conservative statesman, born in Canada; prime minister (1922–23)
2. LawDenis1940MScottishSPORT AND GAMES: footballerFILMS AND TV: television commentatorFILMS AND TV: radio commentator Denis. born 1940, Scottish footballer; a striker, he played for Manchester United (1962–73) and Scotland (30 goals in 55 games, 1958–74); European Footballer of the Year (1964)
3. LawJohn16711729MScottishBUSINESS: financier John. 1671–1729, Scottish financier. He founded the first bank in France (1716) and the Mississippi Scheme for the development of Louisiana (1717), which collapsed due to excessive speculation
4. LawJude1972MBritishFILMS AND TV: actor Jude . born 1972, British film actor, who starred in The Talented Mr Ripley (1999), Cold Mountain (2003), and Sherlock Holmes (2009)
5. LawWilliam16861761MBritishRELIGION: clergyman William. 1686–1761, British Anglican divine, best known for A Serious Call to a Holy and Devout Life (1728)

law

/ lô /

1. A statement that describes invariable relationships among phenomena under a specified set of conditions. Boyle's law, for instance, describes what will happen to the volume of an ideal gas if its pressure changes and its temperature remains the same. The conditions under which some physical laws hold are idealized (for example, there are no ideal gases in the real world), thus some physical laws apply universally but only approximately.
2. See Note at hypothesis

Other Words From

• law·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of law¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English law(e), lagh(e), Old English lagu, from unattested Old Norse lagu, early plural of lag “layer, stratum, a laying in order, fixed tune, (in collective sense) law”; akin to lay ¹, lie ²

Origin of law²

First recorded in 1580–90; form of lord

Word History and Origins

Origin of law¹

Old English hlǣw

Origin of law²

Old English lagu, from Scandinavian; compare Icelandic lög (pl) things laid down, law

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. be a law to / unto oneself, to follow one's own inclinations, rules of behavior, etc.; act independently or unconventionally, especially without regard for established mores.
2. lay down the law,
   1. to state one's views authoritatively.
   2. to give a command in an imperious manner:

      The manager laid down the law to the workers.

3. take the law into one's own hands, to administer justice as one sees fit without recourse to the usual law enforcement or legal processes:

   The townspeople took the law into their own hands before the sheriff took action.

4. at law. at law ( def ).

More idioms and phrases containing law

• above suspicion (the law)
• lay down the law
• letter of the law
• long arm of the law
• Murphy's law
• possession is nine points of the law
• take the law into one's hands
• unwritten law

Synonym Study

See theory.

Example Sentences

The Inflation Reduction Act, the landmark climate law Biden signed, has unleashed a boom in electric vehicle and battery manufacturing and other clean energy technology that has disproportionately benefited red states and districts.

From Los Angeles Times

In September, Adetshina, a law student, told the BBC that she still saw herself as "proudly South African" and "proudly Nigerian".

From BBC

In crafting them, his office considers several factors, including the complete text of the measure and how it would change existing law, a spokesperson said.

From Los Angeles Times

The Go8 has called the proposed laws "draconian", while others accused the government of "wilfully weakening" the economy and of using international students as "cannon fodder in a poll-driven battle over migration".

From BBC

While consumer law gives individuals a cooling-off period after signing a contract, there is no such protection for businesses.

From BBC

Related Words

• act
• case
• charge
• charter
• code
• constitution
• decision
• decree
• legislation
• mandate
• measure
• order
• precedent
• regulation
• requirement
• ruling
• statute

More About Law

What is law?

A law is a rule made by an authority and that must be obeyed.

A law is commonly made by a government, which citizens must follow or face punishment. For example, in most places there are laws about not stealing. If you are caught stealing, you could be fined or put in jail, depending on the law broken and the punishment set up for that law.

Law can be used more broadly to refer to a set of laws, such as all of a nation’s laws. To say murder is against the law is to say that murder is not allowed in the geographic area being referred to, such as a state or country.

Law can also be used to describe the legal field, especially as a career, as in Zola had always dreamed of a career in law, so she studied hard in law school.

In the sciences, a law is an indisputable fact about the way the world and the forces in it work. Such laws explain what happens but do not describe why it happens.

Example: I believe it is against the law to set up security cameras without posting a sign on the door.

Where does law come from?

The first records of the term law come from before the 1000s. It is believed to come from the Old Norse lag, meaning “laying order” or “fixed tune.” A law is established to keep members of a community in order and fixed to a specific way of life that promotes peace or discourages violence.

Although law generally refers to a rule made by a government, it can also be used to refer to any strong rule made by an authority that must be followed. For example, your parents’ house rules might be described as laws if they must be strictly followed. As well, a behavior a person might do instinctively or spontaneously might also be called a law. For example, trying to save your life when you are in danger might be described as the law of self-preservation.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to law?

• lawless (adjective)
• lawful (adjective)
• lawlike (adjective)

What are some synonyms for law?

• act
• decree
• legislation
• regulation
• rule

What are some words that share a root or word element with law?

• lawbook
• law-abiding
• lawbreaker
• lawgiver

What are some words that often get used in discussing law?

• interpret
• system
• uphold

How is law used in real life?

Because laws are important to a well-run society, law is commonly used in everyday speech.

You ever be killin it in an argument and then just sit back and be like…wow…I really should pursue a career in law.

— Zendaya (@Zendaya) January 19, 2018

BREAKING: Gov. Newsom signs law allowing inmate firefighters in California to have records expunged, clearing the way for them to become professional firefighters once they are released from prison.

— Ashley Zavala (@ZavalaA) September 11, 2020

Weird law: Flushing the loo after 10pm in an apt building is illegal in Switzerland. The Government consider it noise pollution. (Too much)

— Gobinath Chandran (@Gobinath_C) October 4, 2017

 

Try using law!

Which of the following is NOT a synonym for law?

A. act
B. decree
C. order
D. suggestion