illicitly
Americanadverb
-
in a way that is not legally permitted or authorized; unlawfully.
She estimates that more than one-third of all software installed on personal computers is obtained illicitly.
-
in a way that is disapproved of or not permitted for moral or ethical reasons.
In divorce proceedings, “corespondent” means the person that one of the partners has been illicitly sleeping with.
Etymology
Origin of illicitly
First recorded in 1660–70; illicit ( def. ) + -ly ( 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.
Since his 2008 retirement from the FBI, he has acted as a “high-value asset security consultant” to museums, auction houses, trade shows, collectors and the like to protect and, when necessary, recover illicitly acquired objects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
The method is widely used across the industry, but US officials say Chinese firms have deployed it at scale to illicitly copy proprietary American systems.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
The Vatican said on Thursday: "The sacred ministers of the Society of St Pius X administer the sacraments illicitly, while the sacrament of penance they administer and the marriages they witness are invalid."
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
The raid stems from an investigation in May into allegations that three individuals illicitly exported the U.S. company’s AI servers to China that were equipped with high-end Nvidia chips.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
He was a born anatomist and so devoted to his studies that he sometimes illicitly borrowed limbs, organs, and other parts from cadavers and took them home for leisurely dissection.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
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