martial law

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noun
  1. the law temporarily imposed upon an area by state or national military forces when civil authority has broken down or during wartime military operations.

  2. the law imposed upon a defeated country or occupied territory by the military forces of the occupying power.

Origin of martial law

1
First recorded in 1525–35

Words Nearby martial law

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use martial law in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for martial law

martial law

noun
  1. the rule of law established and maintained by the military in the absence of civil law

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