licentious
Americanadjective
-
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.
adjective
-
sexually unrestrained or promiscuous
-
rare showing disregard for convention
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of licentious
First recorded in 1525–35, licentious is from the Latin word licentiōsus “unrestrained”; see license, -ous
Explanation
Someone who is licentious behaves or speaks inappropriately, usually in regards to sex. What some might call a licentious senior citizen, others would simply refer to as "a dirty old man" (or woman). We usually talk about licentious behavior, but there also can be licentious photographs. Besides being inappropriate, licentious behavior is also usually regarded as immoral. If at all possible, therefore, licentious is a description you should seek to avoid for yourself.
Vocabulary lists containing licentious
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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Novel Study: The Crucible, Act 1
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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.
If the Licentious had not utterly forgot what it is to be modest, they would know that offended Modesty labours under one of the greatest Sufferings to which human Life can be exposed.
From The Spectator, Volume 2. by Addison, Joseph
Till now you haue gone on, and fill'd the time With all Licentious measure, making your willes The scope of Iustice.
From Timon of Athens by Shakespeare, William
Licentious ones These English, as all canting peoples are.—
From The Dynasts by Hardy, Thomas
Will the Strictnesses of Virtue and Religion be ever relished by a Mind tinctur'd with such Licentious Representations?
From Representation of the Impiety and Immorality of the English Stage (1704); Some Thoughts Concerning the Stage in a Letter to a Lady (1704) by Anonymous
Alternate follies take the sway, Licentious passions burn; Which tenfold force gives Nature's law, That man was made to mourn.
From Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern, Vol. 7 by Warner, Charles Dudley
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.
