licentious

American

[lahy-sen-shuhs] / laɪˈsɛn ʃəs /

adjective

sexually unrestrained; lascivious; libertine; lewd.
unrestrained by law or general morality; lawless; immoral.

Synonyms:

profligate, abandoned

Antonyms:

lawful
going beyond customary or proper bounds or limits; disregarding rules.

licentious British

/ laɪˈsɛnʃəs /

adjective

sexually unrestrained or promiscuous
rare showing disregard for convention

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

licentiously adverb
licentiousness noun
nonlicentious adjective
nonlicentiously adverb
overlicentious adjective
overlicentiously adverb
unlicentious adjective
unlicentiously adverb

Etymology

Origin of licentious

First recorded in 1525–35, licentious is from the Latin word licentiōsus “unrestrained”; license, -ous

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023