outlaw

American  

[out-law] / ˈaʊtˌlɔ /

noun

1. a lawless person or habitual criminal, especially one who is a fugitive from the law.

   Synonyms:

   brigand, bandit, desperado

2. a person, group, or thing excluded from the benefits and protection of the law.

3. a person under sentence of outlawry.

4. a person who refuses to be governed by the established rules or practices of any group; rebel; nonconformist.

   one of the outlaws of country music.

5. Chiefly Western U.S.

   1. a horse that cannot be broken; a mean, intractable horse.

   2. any rogue animal.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make unlawful or illegal.

   The Eighteenth Amendment outlawed the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating beverages in the U.S.

2. to deprive of the benefits and protection of the law.

   Members of guerrilla bands who refused to surrender were outlawed.

3. to prohibit.

   to outlaw smoking in a theater.

   Synonyms:

   forbid, ban, proscribe

4. to remove from legal jurisdiction; deprive of legal force.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of an outlaw.

outlaw British  

/ ˈaʊtˌlɔː /

noun

1. (formerly) a person excluded from the law and deprived of its protection

2. any fugitive from the law, esp a habitual transgressor

3. a wild or untamed beast

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verb

1. to put (a person) outside the law and deprive of its protection

2. (in the US) to deprive (a contract) of legal force

3. to ban

Other Word Forms

• self-outlaw noun
• self-outlawed adjective
• unoutlawed adjective

Etymology

Origin of outlaw

before 1150; Middle English outlawe, Old English ūtlaga < Old Norse ūtlagi one outside the protection of the law; out, law ¹

Example Sentences

And, as Barron’s reported last week, much of what the bills seek to outlaw may already be banned under existing regulations.

From Barron's

Greyhound racing is to be outlawed in Scotland with MSPs set to pass a ban.

From BBC

In the meantime, the council outlawed discrimination against polyamorous people and others in nontraditional family structures, such as multigenerational immigrant households.

From Los Angeles Times

Greyhound racing is to be banned in Wales, after Senedd members voted to outlaw the practice.

From BBC

At times, the panic it induced in opposition defences - who were still getting to grips with 2024 law tweaks outlawing deliberate blocking of chasers - was even relished.

From BBC

Related Words

• bandit
• crook
• desperado
• fugitive
• gangster
• hoodlum
• hooligan
• marauder
• mobster
• outcast
• pariah
• robber