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lawful

[ law-fuhl ]
/ ˈlɔ fəl /
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See synonyms for: lawful / lawfully / lawfulness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
allowed or permitted by law; not contrary to law: a lawful enterprise.
recognized or sanctioned by law; legitimate: a lawful marriage; a lawful heir.
appointed or recognized by law; legally qualified: a lawful king.
acting or living according to the law; law-abiding: a lawful man; a lawful community.
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Origin of lawful

First recorded in 1250–1300, lawful is from the Middle English word laghful.See law1, -ful

OTHER WORDS FROM lawful

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lawful in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lawful

lawful
/ (ˈlɔːfʊl) /

adjective
allowed, recognized, or sanctioned by law; legal

Derived forms of lawful

lawfully, adverblawfulness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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