illégal

Illégal is a French adjective meaning contrary to law or forbidden by law. It describes actions, conditions, or objects that are not authorized or are prohibited by statute, regulation, or customary legal norms. The word agrees with gender and number: illégal (masc sing), illégale (fem sing), illégaux (masc pl), illégales (fem pl).

Etymology traces illégal to Latin illegalis, from in- (not) + legalis (legal), formed through Old French and integrated into modern French with typical adjective endings. The noun form related to it is illégalité, meaning illegality.

Usage and examples: common collocations include activité illégale, commerce illégal, marchandise illégale, immigration illégale, and substances illégales. In ordinary speech one can say “C’est illégal” to indicate that something violates the law, or refer to an act as illégalement performed when describing the manner of conduct.

Legal context: illegality is determined by the laws of a given jurisdiction, which can vary widely between countries and regions. An act may be illégal without necessarily being criminally punishable in all contexts, or it may be both illégal and punishable with penalties such as fines, seizure of goods, or imprisonment. Laws define what constitutes illegal acts and the corresponding enforcement mechanisms.

Related terms include illégalité (the noun for illegality) and the adverb illégalement. Cognates exist in other languages—ilegal in Spanish, illegale in Italian and Portuguese, and illegal in English—sharing the same basic meaning.