as in illegal
contrary to or forbidden by law
had a long history of using illicit drugs
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Recent Examples of illicit
Those common problems are the drug trade — Colombia is one of the world’s leading producers of coca, which is used to make cocaine, and the United States the largest consumer of the drug — and gangs that enable the cross-border flow of people, narcotics and other illicit goods.
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Erika Angulo, NBC news, 9 Jan. 2026
Although the sale of other illicit drugs, like fentanyl, has emerged in recent years, the rates of violence associated with them have not been as high.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
The illicit share of all crypto transaction volume is slightly up from last year but remains below 1%.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 8 Jan. 2026
The paper suggests that the illicit fentanyl trade — which drove a historic surge in drug deaths during the past decade — experienced a large-scale decline in supply.
—David Ovalle, Washington Post, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for illicit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illicit
Adjective
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Louisville police say anything that goes into the air or explodes is illegal for average citizens.—
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Official fireworks shows took place over the city, and illegal pyrotechnics lit up the sky everywhere in between.—
Adjective
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Troopers also seized an unregistered gun and ammunition from Cook, who is charged with trafficking 200 grams or more of cocaine, as well as unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.—
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But once those moratoriums ended in 2023, unlawful detainers (a type of notice that can lead to eviction) doubled from June 2022 to June 2023.—
Adjective
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In addition to the murder charge, Thompson faces charges of committing a terroristic act, aggravated assault, engaging in violent criminal group activity and endangering the welfare of a minor, according to the jail roster.—
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The discovery helped open the door to more recent developments such as tinkering with the genetic makeup of living things, treating disease by inserting genes into patients, identifying human remains and criminal suspects from DNA samples, and tracing family trees and ancient human ancestors.—
Cite this Entry
“Illicit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illicit. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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