violated

[vahy-uh-ley-tid]

adjective

1. (of a law, principle, promise, agreement, instruction, etc.) acted against; not kept or honored; broken or transgressed.

   The often violated rule of thumb is that families should not spend more than 30 percent of their budget on housing.

   After this betrayal by local authorities, it will take some effort to restore the violated trust of the community.

2. (of something precious, sacred, beautiful, etc.) treated with disrespect or contempt; marred or desecrated.

   British art of the World War I era is full of images of a torn and violated landscape.

   The discovery of the violated tombs has caused pain and distress among the people of the area.

3. sexually molested, especially raped.

   History shows repeatedly the difficulty for a violated woman to be heard and believed.

4. rudely disturbed; thoughtlessly interfered with.

   They complain about their violated privacy, but then post way more online than anyone wants to know about them.

5. (of a border, home, property, restricted space, etc.) broken through or into by force or without right.

   Law enforcement was able to get to the violated border point before the smuggler escaped.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of violate.

Other Word Forms

• quasi-violated adjective
• unviolated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of violated¹

First recorded in 1535–45; violate ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; violate ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

However, he added, "if the Justice Department is able to prove the facts alleged and demonstrate the information is properly classified, his conduct may very well have violated the law".

Read more on BBC

Now Ms. Pocklembo and I are suing the union, with the help of the Fairness Center, a nonprofit law firm that represents public employees who believe unions have violated their rights.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Afghanistan said on Wednesday that the truce would endure unless Pakistan violated it, without confirming that the deal had a 48-hour limit.

Read more on Barron's

Soon after, Rohan was accused by a state lawmaker of colluding with officials to sign off on design plans that violated building codes, according to the lawmaker and Indian press reports at the time.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Bonta’s office said a second suit, announced Thursday, alleges the administration violated federal laws in the program’s cancellation, including the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S.

Read more on Los Angeles Times