1law1 (lɔː
)
Definitions
noun
- a rule or set of rules, enforceable by the courts, regulating the government of a state, the relationship between the organs of government and the subjects of the state, and the relationship or conduct of subjects towards each other
- a rule or body of rules made by the legislature See statute law
- a rule or body of rules made by a municipal or other authority See bylaw
- the condition and control enforced by such rules
- ((in combination) ⇒
lawcourt
- a rule of conduct ⇒
a law of etiquette
- one of a set of rules governing a particular field of activity ⇒
the laws of tennis
- See the law
- a binding force or statement ⇒
his word is law
law of nature a generalization based on a recurring fact or event- the science or knowledge of law; jurisprudence
- the principles originating and formerly applied only in courts of common law Compare equity (sense 3)
- a general principle, formula, or rule describing a phenomenon in mathematics, science, philosophy, etc ⇒
the laws of thermodynamics
- See the Law
- See a law unto itself
- See go to law
- See lay down the law
- See reading the Law
- See take the law into one's own hands
related adjectives
judicial
jural
juridical
legal
Word Origin
Old English lagu, from Scandinavian; compare Icelandic lög (pl) things laid down, lawSynonyms
View thesaurus entry=
the police,
constabulary,
the police force
law enforcement agency,
the boys in blue,
the fuzz,
the Old Bill,
=
statute,
act,
bill,
rule,
demand,
order,
command,
code,
regulation,
resolution,
decree,
canon,
covenant,
ordinance,
commandment,
enactment,
edict,
Law (lɔː)
Definitions
noun
- Andrew Bonar (ˈbɒnə). 1858–1923, British Conservative statesman, born in Canada; prime minister (1922–23)
- Denis. born 1940, Scottish footballer and television and radio commentator on the sport
- John. 1671–1729, Scottish financier. He founded the first bank in France (1716) and the Mississippi Scheme for the development of Louisiana (1717), which collapsed due to excessive speculation
- Jude. born 1972, British film actor, who starred in . born 1972, British film actor, who starred in The Talented Mr Ripley (1999) and . born 1972, British film actor, who starred in (1999) and Cold Mountain (2003).
- William. 1686–1761, British Anglican divine, best known for 1686–1761, British Anglican divine, best known for A Serious Call to a Holy and Devout Life (1728)
Quotations
"The end of the law is, not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom"
"It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me, but it can keep him from lynching me, and I think that's pretty important"
"The law is a causeway upon which so long as he keeps to it a citizen may walk safely"
"No brilliance is needed in the law. Nothing but common sense, and relatively clean finger nails"
"A jury consists of twelve persons chosen to decide who has the better lawyer"
"Laws were made to be broken"
"The Common Law of England has been laboriously built about a mythical figure - the figure of "The Reasonable Man""
"We do not get good laws to restrain bad people. We get good people to restrain bad laws"
"The law is a ass - a idiot"
"Ignorance of the law excuses no man; not that all men know the law, but because 'tis an excuse every man will plead, and no man can tell how to confute him"
"Written laws are like spider's webs; they will catch, it is true, the weak and poor, but would be torn in pieces by the rich and powerful"
"Law is a bottomless pit"
"It is better that ten guilty persons escape than one innocent suffer"
"The one great principle of the English law is to make business for itself"
"No poet ever interpreted nature as freely as a lawyer interprets the truth"
"The laws of most countries are far worse than the people who execute them, and many of them are only able to remain laws by being seldom or never carried into effect"
"Hard cases make bad laws"
"One law for the rich, and another for the poor"
Translations
- British English:
law
The law is a system of rules that a society or government develops to deal with things like crime.Driving too fast is against the law.lɔː NOUN Driving too fast is against the law.
- Spanish:
ley
nf
- French:
loi
nf
- German:
Gesetz
nnt
- Chinese: 法律 n
- Arabic: قَانُونٌ n
- Portuguese: lei nf
- Russian: закон nm
- Croatian: zakon nm
- Czech: zákon nm
- Danish: lov nutr
- Dutch: wet n
- Finnish: laki n
- Greek: νόμος nm
- Italian: legge nf
- Japanese: 法律 n
- Korean: 법 n
- Norwegian: lov nm
- Polish: prawo nnt
- Brazilian Portuguese: lei nf
- European Spanish:
ley
nf
- Swedish: lag nutr
- Thai: กฏหมาย n
- Turkish: yasa n
- Vietnamese: luật n
Usage examples
Fardohnyan law demands a peace treaty between both Houses in the marriage.
, TREASON KEEP (2001)The'grey areas' in the law have left everyone in a state of limbo as to what they may or may not do.
Country Life (2004)Gay culture thrived even while the law threatened a sentence of life imprisonment for male homosexual activity.
Irish Times (2002)In my sixth form I attended lectures in English and law at Edinburgh University and found the law lecturers more interesting.
Glasgow Herald (2001)Unlike other schools of anatomy, outsiders such as artists or law students interested in forensic medicine were not admitted.
, THE MEDICAL MYSTERIES E-OMNIBUS (2001)