Chinese word

非法

Pronunciation

Pinyinfēi fǎ

Meaning

  • adjectiveillegal

Example

这样做是非法的。zhè yàng zuò shì fēi fǎ de

Doing this is illegal.

Illustration for 非法 (illegal)

More examples

警方查封了非法经营的商店。jǐng fāng chá fēng le fēi fǎ jīng yíng de shāng diàn

The police sealed the shop engaged in illegal business operations.

Core concept

A condition or action that lies beyond the boundary recognized by law.

Common phrases

  • 非法经营fēi fǎ jīng yíng

    illegal business operations

  • 非法入境fēi fǎ rù jìng

    illegal entry

  • 非法集会fēi fǎ jí huì

    illegal assembly

Similar words

违法wéi fǎ: Against the law and subject to criminal or administrative penalties.
违规wéi guī: Against a rule or required procedure, with possible warnings or workplace penalties.
不法bù fǎ: Without a legal basis and not legally recognized.

Definition in Chinese

不符合法律规定的行为或状态，法律禁止或不承认，用来表示某种做法、事情或结果与法律相抵触。bù fú hé fǎ lǜ guī dìng de xíng wéi huò zhuàng tài fǎ lǜ jìn zhǐ huò bù chéng rèn yòng lái biǎo shì móu zhǒng zuò fǎ shì qíng huò jié guǒ yǔ fǎ lǜ xiāng dǐ chù

Word origin

非 (fēi, "not") + 法 (fǎ, "law") forms the direct idea of something outside the law.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, 非法 (fēifǎ, "illegal") has a formal tone and appears especially often in notices, regulations, and legal discussion.

Opposites

Related words

  • 非法性fēi fǎ xìngillegalitynoun
  • 非法化fēi fǎ huàmake illegalverb

Word lists with this word