- law
- noun1 official rule/rules ⇨ See also ↑martial lawADJECTIVE▪ administrative, case, civil, common, constitutional, criminal, statute, etc.▪ abortion, bankruptcy, business, contract, divorce, employment, family, immigration, labour/labor, libel, tax, etc.▪ federal, international, state▪ clear▪
The law is clear: bribery is wrong.
▪ unclear, vague▪ harsh, strict, stringent, tough▪Environmental laws are strict about polluting precious water.
▪ discriminatory, unconstitutional, unjust▪We believe this law is unconstitutional.
▪ liberal▪ restrictive▪the passage of a restrictive immigration law in 1924
▪ Jewish, Talmudic▪ Islamic, shariaVERB + LAW▪ become▪A presidential veto prevented the bill from becoming law.
▪Parliament voted for the bill to become law.
▪ apply, enforce, implement, uphold▪It's the job of the police to enforce the law.
▪ follow, obey, observe, respect▪ break, flout, violate▪ adopt, create, enact, introduce, pass▪ overturn, repeal▪ amend, change, reform, revise▪Congress amended the law in 1998.
▪ draft, write▪the legislators who drafted the law
▪ interpret▪Judges interpret this law in different ways.
LAW + VERB▪ allow sth, authorize sth, permit sth▪ recognize sth▪a law recognizing civil unions for same-sex couples
▪ ban sth, forbid sth, prohibit sth▪The law forbids gambling of any kind.
▪ limit sth, restrict sth▪a law limiting the hours of work to ten hours per day
▪ criminalize sth▪Laws criminalizing same-sex relationships were ruled unconstitutional.
▪ mandate sth (esp. AmE), require sth▪The wearing of a crash helmet is required by law.
▪ govern sth, regulate sth▪the law governing school attendance
▪the laws regulating firearms
▪ apply to sb/sth, cover sb/sth▪The law applies equally to businesses large and small.
LAW + NOUN▪ court (BrE) (also court of law (BrE, AmE)▪ case, suit (usually lawsuit)▪lawsuits filed by women against employers
▪ enforcement▪The building was raided by law enforcement agents.
▪ violation (AmE)▪ reform▪the broader implications of copyright law reform
▪ clerk, partner (both AmE)▪ office, practice (both AmE)▪She lost her job at a Boston law office.
▪ license (AmE)▪ book, journal, review▪a room filled with law books
▪ libraryPREPOSITION▪ above the law▪No one is above the law.
▪ against the law▪What you did was clearly against the law.
▪ beyond the law▪individuals who are acting beyond the law
▪ by law▪By law, you are obliged to install smoke alarms in the factory.
▪ outside the law▪rebels who live outside the law
▪ within the law▪The company is operating entirely within the law.
▪ law against▪a local law against keeping horses
▪ law concerning, law on, law regarding, law relating to▪the law concerning industrial action ballots
▪A law on hunting will cause a lot of disagreements.
▪the laws regarding child actors
▪the law relating to the sale of goods
PHRASES▪ as the law stands (BrE)▪As the law stands, you can get married at sixteen.
▪ law and order▪Martial law was imposed to prevent the breakdown of law and order.
▪ the law of the land▪the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became the law of the land on July 2, 1964.
▪ the letter of the law▪In spite of the difficulties it would cause her family, the judge stuck to the letter of the law and jailed her.
▪ take the law into your own hands▪When police failed to arrest the suspect, local people took the law into their own hands.
2 subject of study/professionVERB + LAW▪ practise/practiceLAW + NOUN▪ firm▪ school▪She's in law school. (AmE)
▪She's at law school. (BrE)
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
