decriminalise

IPA/dɪkɹˈɪmɪnəlˌaɪz/
IPA/dᵻkɹˈɪmɪnəlˌaɪz/

decriminalise — verb

1. to change the law so that doing or having a particular thing — usually a minor d

1.verbtransitiveC1
Definition

to change the law so that doing or having a particular thing — usually a minor drug, a sexual practice, or a public-order act — is no longer treated as a crime that can be punished.

Example

Portugal decided to decriminalise the personal use of small amounts of drugs back in 2001.

decriminalise + abstract noun phrase ('the personal use of...')

Many doctors have urged the government to decriminalise cannabis for patients with chronic pain.

passive-to-infinitive: urge X to decriminalise Y

Common collocations
  • decriminalise drug use
  • decriminalise cannabis / marijuana
  • decriminalise abortion
  • decriminalise sex work
  • decriminalise minor offences
  • move to decriminalise
  • vote to decriminalise
Synonyms
  • legalise

    stronger — makes the act fully legal and usually regulated, not just unpunished

  • depenalise

    technical legal term; removes the penalty while keeping the act itself illegal on paper

  • deregulate

    broader business sense — removes rules generally, not specifically criminal status

Antonyms
  • criminalise

    direct opposite — make an act punishable as a crime

  • outlaw

    forbid by law; stronger and more absolute than criminalise

Grammar Patterns

decriminalise + noun (an act / a substance)

Usage Note

Subject is usually a government, parliament, court, or country; object is usually an act (drug use, abortion, prostitution) or a substance (cannabis, marijuana). Frequently passive ('X was decriminalised in 2018'). Distinguish from 'legalise': decriminalising removes criminal punishment but keeps the act regulated or socially disapproved, while legalising fully permits it.

Common Mistakes

The court decriminalised the thief last year.
The court acquitted the thief last year.
you decriminalise an act or substance, not a person who broke a law.
Selling marijuana is now decriminalised, so anyone can open a shop.
Selling marijuana is now legalised, so anyone can open a shop.
decriminalisation only removes the criminal penalty; running a business usually still needs legalisation and a licence.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four verbs describe loosening the law's grip on an activity, but they differ sharply in how far they go. 'Decriminalise' removes the criminal punishment — police will no longer arrest you — but the act may still be officially forbidden, fined, or socially frowned upon. 'Legalise' goes further: the act becomes fully lawful and usually subject to government regulation, so cannabis can be sold in licensed shops rather than just possessed without penalty. 'Depenalise' is the most technical of the group, used mainly in legal scholarship to mean dropping the penalty while leaving the prohibition on paper. 'Deregulate' belongs to economics and business: it removes rules and oversight from an industry, not the criminal status of an act. So Portugal decriminalised drugs (no jail), Canada legalised cannabis (licensed sales), the UK has depenalised some traffic offences (fines, no record), and Reagan deregulated airlines (less paperwork, no criminal change).

decriminalise ↗legalise ↗depenalisederegulate ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • move to decriminalise
  • vote to decriminalise
  • campaign to decriminalise
  • push to decriminalise

Prepositions

  • decriminalise in [country]
  • decriminalise for [group]

Etymology

Latin (crimen)Old French (crime)English (criminalise)English (decriminalise)

Formed in English in the mid-twentieth century by adding the Latin-derived prefix 'de-' (meaning 'remove, undo') to the verb 'criminalise', itself built from Latin 'crimen' (accusation, offence) plus the verb-forming suffix '-ise'. The word entered common public-policy use in the 1960s and 1970s during debates over drug laws and personal-liberty offences. 'Decriminalise' is the British spelling; American English usually writes 'decriminalize'.