violate
Americanverb (used with object)
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violates,
present (3rd person singular)
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violated,
past participle, past
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violating
present participle
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to act against (a law, principle, promise, agreement, instruction, etc.); break, transgress, or fail to honor.
He violated city bylaws by building without a permit.
I’d stay longer, but I don’t want to violate my curfew.
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to treat (something precious, sacred, beautiful, etc.) with disrespect or contempt; mar or desecrate.
They feel compelled to speak out against governments that violate human rights.
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to break through or into by force or without right, as a border, home, property, restricted space, etc..
A hostile power has violated our airspace.
They returned to find that their home had been violated.
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to break in upon or disturb rudely; interfere thoughtlessly with.
These surveillance cameras violate my privacy.
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to molest sexually, especially to rape.
verb
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to break, disregard, or infringe (a law, agreement, etc)
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to rape or otherwise sexually assault
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to disturb rudely or improperly; break in upon
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to treat irreverently or disrespectfully; outrage
he violated a sanctuary
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obsolete to mistreat physically
adjective
Usage
What else does violate mean? To violate is to breach some code of conduct, often in an egregious manner. It is often used to describe breaking the law or committing physical violence against another–especially rape and sexual assault. In Black slang, to violate someone is personally insulting or assaulting someone.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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violabilitynoun
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violaternoun
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violationnoun
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violatornoun
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previolateverb (used with object)
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reviolateverb (used with object)
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violableadjective
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violativeadjective
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violablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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violatesimple
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violatessimple
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have violatedperfect
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has violatedperfect
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am violatingprogressive
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are violatingprogressive
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is violatingprogressive
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have been violatingperfect progressive
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has been violatingperfect progressive
Past
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violatedsimple
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had violatedperfect
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was violatingprogressive
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were violatingprogressive
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had been violatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of violate
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin violātus “treated with violence,” past participle of violāre “to treat with violence, violate,” apparently derivative of violentus violent ( def. ) (taking viol- as base); see -ate 1 ( def. )
Explanation
Violate is a verb that describes actions that show no respect for people, laws, property, and customs. Drivers violate the law when they fail to stop at red lights, and people violate your privacy when they eavesdrop on your personal conversations. Violate comes from the Latin word violatus which means "to break," as in a promise or oath. As members of our society, we make unspoken promises — to follow all laws, to help people if we can, or at the very least, not hurt them. So when we violate — laws, property, people's abilities to live safe, peaceful lives — we break the promises that come with being lawful citizens.
Vocabulary lists containing violate
"Tinker v. Des Moines": Excerpts from Justice Fortas's Opinion
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Lesson 1
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"Too Young to Drive?" and "Rules of the Road"
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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.
See Examples For:
The next day, Centcom posted on social media that it disabled the ship after the crew attempted to violate the blockade several times and ignored repeated warnings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Defaults in tennis are rare and only occur when players violate the sport's code of conduct.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Discovery, arguing the deal would violate U.S. antitrust law.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
The agency still could cancel funding if recipients violate their grant terms, but it would have to provide an individualized explanation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
People who violate Japanese law, even unknowingly, may be arrested, imprisoned, and deported.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
The U.S. has warned Moscow that its failure to disclose details about the death violates international health obligations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Despite all the public discourse around loneliness and the need to connect, the cold call violates some of the communication norms we’ve spent decades developing.
From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2026
The Southern Section cannot make personnel changes when a school violates rules, but it can prevent teams from playing in the playoffs if schools don’t self-report violations and decline to take action.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
The organisation, which wants an end to IPPs, said the sentence "violates serious human rights".
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Hopkins, the Supreme Court had recognized that racially selective enforcement violates equal protection of the laws.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
He posted on X, external thanking Portugal's Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcao Judice and saying the commission's initial decision had clearly violated the law and amounted to a "manifest abuse of power".
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
A few months later, a different judge found that the department had violated previous court restrictions by using projectile weapons to disperse crowds at protests against immigration enforcement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
Investment Policy Committee, was brought by former Intel employees who allege that plan managers violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s duty of prudence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
But all of this is uncharted territory for Congress, as Briffault explained: “The problem is, the laws have never been significantly enforced because they’ve never been violated in such an egregious way,” he said.
From Slate ● Oct. 1, 2026
I would be forever tied to stores for bullets, and the friendly spirit of my mountaintop would be violated.
From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Both blame one another for violating a 2022 deal that ended a two-year civil war.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
"Our investigation confirmed that these individuals mishandled sensitive information outside established company procedures, violating our policies and breaking the trust essential to our work," a spokesperson told the BBC.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
San Francisco 49ers owner and CEO Jed York has been suspended for six games and fined $500,000 for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy, the league announced Friday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
"Our investigation confirmed that these individuals mishandled sensitive information outside established company procedures, violating our policies and breaking the trust essential to our work."
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
Otherwise, Enel was violating the Osage’s sovereignty over their underground reservation.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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.
