wrongfully
/ˈrɒŋfəli/ (bre, ipa) · [rˈɔŋfəli] /ˈrɔːŋfəli/ (ame, ipa) · [rˈɔŋfəli] /ˈrȯŋ-fəl How to pronounce wrongful (audio)/ (ame, mw)
wrongfully — adverb
1. Done without fairness, legal justification, or moral right — used especially whe
Done without fairness, legal justification, or moral right — used especially when someone is accused, convicted, or fired from a job for no good reason.
Niran was wrongfully arrested and held for three days before the police released him.
collocation: wrongfully arrested
The court ordered the textile factory to pay damages to twelve workers who were wrongfully dismissed for joining a union.
collocation: wrongfully dismissed
Defne believes she was wrongfully accused of stealing money from the office safe.
After twelve years in prison, Jun was released when DNA evidence proved he was wrongfully convicted.
- rightfully
in a way that is fair and legally correct
文法句型
wrongfully + past participle
用法筆記
Frequently occurs with past participles of legal-process verbs: accused, arrested, convicted, dismissed, imprisoned, terminated.
常見錯誤
wrongfully — adjective
- wrongfullypositive
- more wrongfullycomparative
- most wrongfullysuperlative
1. Not fair, not morally right, or not just — describing an action, claim, or situa
Not fair, not morally right, or not just — describing an action, claim, or situation that falls short of what is proper.
The newspaper apologized for making wrongful claims about the mayor's private life.
Using company property for personal business is a wrongful act that can lead to dismissal.
collocation: wrongful act
The principal told the staff it was wrongful to suspend students without first hearing their version of the incident.
The school board decided the principal's hiring process was not wrongful and had followed all district regulations.
文法句型
wrongful + noun
be + wrongful
用法筆記
This is the broadest sense of 'wrongful', covering any unfair or immoral conduct. For specifically illegal acts, see sense 2 (WITHOUT LEGAL AUTHORITY) or sense 5 (PROHIBITED BY LAW).
常見錯誤
2. Done without any legal basis or official permission — describing an action by an
Done without any legal basis or official permission — describing an action by an authority that the law does not allow.
The court ruled that the police made a wrongful arrest without sufficient evidence.
collocation: wrongful arrest
Yael's lawyer argued that the search of her apartment was wrongful and violated her rights.
The tenant sued the landlord for wrongful eviction after being forced out without a court order.
A judge found the detention wrongful because the police had no reason to hold the suspect.
- unlawful
more common in general legal writing; interchangeable in many contexts
- unauthorized
broader; not limited to legal settings
- lawful
permitted by law
- authorized
carried out with proper permission
文法句型
wrongful + noun of legal action
用法筆記
Describes actions by officials or institutions that lack legal authorization. Distinguish from sense 1 (UNFAIR OR UNJUST) which covers broader unfairness not limited to legal authority.
3. Not backed by a legal right or title — describing a situation where someone hold
Not backed by a legal right or title — describing a situation where someone holds property or assets without a lawful claim to them.
A distant cousin had kept the family house in wrongful possession for more than twelve years without any legal claim.
collocation: wrongful possession
The judge ordered the woodland returned to the village after a decade of wrongful occupation by a neighboring timber company.
The museum faced a lawsuit for wrongful possession of ancient artefacts taken from another country.
A judge declared the company's claim to the patent wrongful because it had copied the design.
- unlawful
broader sense covering all illegal conduct
- illegitimate
emphasizes lack of proper legal basis
文法句型
wrongful + noun of possession or occupation
用法筆記
Limited to property and entitlement contexts. The opposite is 'rightful' (having a valid legal claim).
4. Causing harm that gives a person the right to seek a legal remedy in court — mos
Causing harm that gives a person the right to seek a legal remedy in court — most common in the expression 'wrongful death'.
The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit after the hospital made a critical error during surgery.
common phrase: wrongful death lawsuit
Tanvi's lawyer proved the factory's chemical release was a wrongful act that damaged local farms.
An employee sued for wrongful termination after being fired for reporting safety violations.
The court ruled that ignoring a broken machine was a wrongful act that injured a worker.
- actionable
technical legal term meaning giving grounds for a lawsuit
- tortious
specialized legal term for civil wrongs
文法句型
wrongful + noun of harm or injury
用法筆記
Used in civil (not criminal) law contexts. 'Wrongful death' is a fixed legal term — it refers to a death caused by someone else's negligence or misconduct, allowing the family to sue for damages.
常見錯誤
5. Against the law and therefore not permitted — describing conduct, use, or activi
Against the law and therefore not permitted — describing conduct, use, or activity that is prohibited by statute or regulation.
The new law made it wrongful to sell tobacco products to anyone under twenty-one.
pattern: it is wrongful to + infinitive
Using the company logo without permission is a wrongful act that can lead to a fine.
The court decided that copying the software for commercial use was wrongful under copyright law.
A new regulation states that wrongful disposal of batteries can result in a heavy penalty.
文法句型
wrongful + noun
it is wrongful to + infinitive
用法筆記
This sense overlaps with 'illegal' but is more formal. Common in statutory language ('it is wrongful to...'). Distinguish from sense 2 (WITHOUT LEGAL AUTHORITY) which focuses on actions by officials; sense 5 covers any prohibited conduct.