violateverb [ T ]
uk/ˈvaɪ.ə.leɪt/us/ˈvaɪ.ə.leɪt/to break or act against something, especially a law, agreement, principle, or something that should be treated with respect:
They were charged with violating federal law.
It seems that the troops deliberately violated the ceasefire agreement.
The doctor has been accused of violating professional ethics.
to go, especially forcefully, into a place or situation which should be treated with respect and in which you are not wanted or not expected to be:
The fishermen claimed that ships from another country had violated their territorial waters.
Questions of this kind violate my privacy and I am not willing to answer them.
formal to rape someone:
She said that she had been treated so roughly by the hospital staff that she felt violated.
More examples
- The courts struck down local segregation laws because they violated the federal constitution.
- Such behaviour violates all the rules of a civilized society.
- Invading tribes had violated their borders.
- These clothes violate her sense of good taste.
- His language violates any sense of decency.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Obeying & breaking the law
- abide
- adhere
- afoul
- bend the law/rules idiom
- breach
- break
- breaker
- clean
- clean up your act idiom
- commit
- compliant
- conform
- contravene
- disobey
- hold
- law-abiding
- observe
- perpetrate
- respect
- venal
See more results »
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Physical & sexual assault & abduction
violator
noun [ C ] uk/ˈvaɪ.ə.leɪ.tər/us/ˈvaɪ.ə.leɪ.t̬ɚ/