lawlessness
Americannoun
-
the quality or condition of being without regard for the law; behavior that is contrary to or shows indifference to the law.
Unfortunately, a lot of confusion, lawlessness, stupidity, and even death surrounds alcohol use in college settings.
-
the state or condition of being without law or law enforcement to provide control or restraint.
For several months, the emerging nation looked as if it would slip into lawlessness and civil war.
Etymology
Origin of lawlessness
First recorded in 1585–95; lawless ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The judges cite the government for its tendency to swear at reality in its defenses and the fundamental lawlessness of the behavior they are trying to block.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2026
And yet, in a version of Britain the rest of Europe has abandoned to death and lawlessness, Kelson survives because of his dedication to artistic and scientific curiosity.
From Salon • Jan. 23, 2026
“You don’t treat lawlessness with other lawlessness, and that’s what’s happened here,” he said Sunday on ABC News’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 5, 2026
But that’s precisely why the lawlessness should be the basis of the fight.
From Slate • Oct. 1, 2025
Instead, Hoover created a pristine origin story, a founding mythology in which the bureau, under his direction, had emerged from lawlessness and overcome the last wild American frontier.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
