international law

American  

noun

1. the body of rules that nations generally recognize as binding in their conduct toward one another.

---

international law British  

noun

1. the body of rules generally recognized by civilized nations as governing their conduct towards each other and towards each other's subjects

---

international law Cultural  

1. A body of rules and principles that govern the relations among nations. (See Geneva Conventions and International Court of Justice.)

---

Etymology

Origin of international law

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

All of this violates both domestic and international law.

From Salon • Jun. 4, 2026

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson condemned the attacks as a “gross violation of international law and the United Nations Charter.”

From Barron's • May 28, 2026

So the 15-judge panel at the ICJ in The Hague will hand down its ruling, which is not binding, but in practice will clarify the right to strike in international law.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

The International Civil Aviation Organization and the US-based Organization of American States corroborated this and accused Cuba of violating international law.

From BBC • May 20, 2026

By the time graduation rolled around, I’d decided I wanted to go to law school, with a specific focus in international law.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad