• mozz@mbin.grits.dev
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    5 months ago

    Something illegal is against the law or breaks the rules. If you’re reading this in jail, you’ve probably done something illegal, and if you’re not in jail, there’s plenty of time to obey the law.

    You can use the adjective illegal to describe breaking the rules, as when you head-butt someone in a game. Acts that go against the law, such as robbing a bank, are also illegal. There is a wide range of things called illegal, from small acts to big ones, but no matter the seriousness, if it is against the law, it is illegal. This adjective also describes people who enter countries without official government approval, they are called “illegal immigrants” or “illegal aliens.”

    Definitions of illegal

    (adjective) prohibited by law or by official or accepted rules

    “an illegal chess move”

    -Vocabulary.com

    • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      You’ll notice the great majority of that definition talks about laws, with one minor exception for games.

      • mozz@mbin.grits.dev
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        5 months ago

        Lemmy is such a bizarre place. Honestly, I’m a little surprised I am still having this conversation. But sure!

        illegal

        [ ih-lee-guhl ]

        adjective

        1. forbidden by law or statute. Synonyms: unlicensed, illicit, illegitimate, unlawful
        2. contrary to or forbidden by official rules, regulations, etc.: The referee ruled that it was an illegal forward pass.

        -Dictionary.com

        The great majority of the definition, comprising a full 64% of the words, talks about meaning 2. So! By your own standards, definition 1 doesn’t count anymore, and I get to complain if you try to use it. How dare you say the word means definition 1, and not definition 2, which is clearly the only real definition and the only one that actually counts. How dare you. How DARE you.

        • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          I defy you to find a single usage of illegal in contemporary writing that refers to neither laws nor games.

          • mozz@mbin.grits.dev
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            5 months ago

            I’m not your citation monkey

            I actually found one, because I was wondering if me and the dictionary were the wrong ones, but I refuse to send it because what I already sent is accurate + sufficient. You can accept or not; it’s up to you.

            • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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              5 months ago

              Well I can’t really cite the whole of the English language to prove my point, can I? Trying to prove a negative is very difficult.