Illicit vs Infringe - What's the difference?
illicit | infringe |
(legal) Not approved by law, but not invalid.
* {{quote-book
, date = 2008-01-08
, title = Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America's Reputation and Leadership
, first = Madeleine
, last = Albright
, authorlink = Madeleine Albright
, location = New York
, publisher = HarperCollins
, isbn = 9780061351808
, ol = 9952500M
, page = 225
, passage = Such migrants may violate our laws against illicit entry, but if that's all they do then they are trespassers, not criminals.
}}
Breaking social norms.
* {{quote-book
, year = 1993
, title = Diaries: In Power 1983-1992
, first = Alan
, last = Clark
, authorlink = Alan Clark
, location = London
, publisher = Weidenfeld and Nicholson
, isbn = 0297813528
, ol = 1046930M
, passage = I only can properly enjoy carol services if I am having an illicit affair with someone in the congregation.
}}
Unlawful.
* {{quote-book
, date = 2010-07-29
, title = (The Dervish House)
, first = Ian
, last = McDonald
, authorlink = Ian McDonald (British author)
, isbn = 9780575089044
, ol = 25418126M
, url = http://books.google.com/books?id=-rgZys-M4q4C&pg=PT328&dq=illicit
, passage = Ay?e ErkoƧ learned long ago that the secret of doing anything illicit in Istanbul is to do it in full public gaze in the clear light of day. No one ever questions the legitimacy of the blatant.
}}
Break or violate a treaty, a law, a right etc.
*{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-08, volume=407, issue=8839, page=55, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= Break in or encroach on something.
As an adjective illicit
is (legal) not approved by law, but not invalid.As a verb infringe is
break or violate a treaty, a law, a right etc.illicit
English
Adjective
(en adjective)- The bigamous marriage, while illicit, was not invalid.
Usage notes
Licit and valid are legal terms to be compared, especially in terms of canon law. With bigamy, if there is an innocent party, the innocent party is validly married; the problem is with the guilty party, who has entered into an illegal second marriage without first divorcing the earlier spouse. The marriage is valid in canon law (and often, civil law), but the guilty party goes to jail nonetheless, in that the marriage is illicit (and illegal), and the innocent party routinely receives a fast annulment and the full sympathy of the court. A corollary is that the children born of such unions are inherently legitimate.Synonyms
* criminal * illegal * illegitimate * prohibited * unlawfulinfringe
English
Alternative forms
* enfringeVerb
(en-verb)Obama goes troll-hunting, passage=According to this saga of intellectual-property misanthropy, these creatures [patent trolls] roam the business world, buying up patents and then using them to demand extravagant payouts from companies they accuse of infringing them. Often, their victims pay up rather than face the costs of a legal battle.}}