lawfullaw‧ful /ˈlɔːfəl $ ˈlɒː-/ ●○○ adjective formal or law 
It is not lawful to kill or injure a pet animal. a lawful arrest his lawful wife—lawfully adverb—lawfulness noun [uncountable]
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- 'Do you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife?' intoned the priest. 'I do,' murmured Carlos.
- a lawful marriage
- It is lawful to employ someone under the age of sixteen if their parents agree.
- Protesters must only use lawful methods of opposing the government.
- The FBI will use all reasonable and lawful means to gather intelligence information.
- The police may not interfere in lawful demonstrations.
Longman Language Activatorallowed by law
something that is legal is allowed by law: · This trade in foreign currency is perfectly legal.become legal: · Divorce finally became legal in 1992.· Over 3,000 gay couples have married since it became legal for them to do so last year. legal tender (=forms of money that are legally accepted): · In Maastricht, Dutch Guilders, Deutschmarks and Belgian Francs are all considered legal tender.
formal actions or methods that are lawful are allowed by law, especially as compared with actions or methods that are not legal: · Protesters must only use lawful methods of opposing the government.it is lawful to do something: · It is lawful to employ someone under the age of sixteen if their parents agree.· The FBI will use all reasonable and lawful means to gather intelligence information.· 'Do you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife?' intoned the priest. 'I do,' murmured Carlos.
legitimate activities, organizations, or claims are done or work according to, normal laws and rules: · He is a criminal who runs a legitimate business as well.· Tobacco smuggling into the UK is seriously affecting the profits of legitimate importers.· How can I be sure that an on-line business is legitimate?· At least three of the dead woman's relatives have a legitimate claim to her house.· The government has refused to recognise the far-right group as a legitimate political party.
an activity or a way of doing business that is above board is done legally, even if it may seem slightly dishonest: · He assured us that the insurance claim was honest and above board, but I'm not so sure.· I'm sure Peggy wouldn't let anything happen that wasn't perfectly open and above board.
: act/keep/stay/remain/operate within the law to make sure that what you do is legal: · He makes tough business deals, but he makes sure he always stays within the law.· Security forces must not only act within the law, but must be seen to do so.· Building contractors must operate within the law by ensuring that an acceptable standard of work is carried out.
formal whether something is legal or not: the legality of something: · The European Court will decide on the legality of his claim.· The union immediately challenged the legality of the decision.be of dubious/questionable/uncertain legality (=when it is not clear whether something is legal or not): · The Appeal Court judge said that his conviction was of dubious legality.· This was the first of several actions that were of questionable legality, and which eventually led to his resignation.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY It is not lawful to kill or injure a pet animal.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
It is not lawful to kill or injure a pet animal.· Their protests will continue, but only by legal means.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN· They can be changed only by agreement or by the adjudication of a lawful authority such as an international court.· The accused must intend to remove the article, knowing that he does not have the owner's consent or lawful authority.· He said that he believed he had lawful authority to ride the bike because he was repairing it for a friend.
· All lawful visitors to the premises are covered by this term.· If he is a lawful visitor it is necessary to go to the 1957 Act.· A lawful visitor is a person who has the permission of the occupier to enter the premises.
WORD FAMILYnounlawlawyeroutlawlawfulnesslawlessnessadjectivelawful ≠ unlawfulverboutlawadverblawfully ≠ unlawfully
allowed or recognized by law SYN legal: It is not lawful to kill or injure a pet animal. a lawful arrest his lawful wife—lawfully adverb—lawfulness noun [uncountable]