licentious

Definitions

From Latin licentia ("freedom, permission") + -ous (adj.) = "full of (excessive) freedom." The leap is the meaning: when permission is pushed past all limits — when someone acts as if every desire is allowed — freedom curdles into vice. So licentious means unrestrained, dissolute, sexually immoral. It is licence taken to excess.

Why It Means This

Licentious is a striking example of semantic deterioration — a word whose meaning soured over time. It shares its root with licence (Latin licentia, "freedom, permission"), but where licence stayed neutral, licentious drifted to the dark end: freedom abused. Someone licentious behaves as though they have a licence to do anything, especially anything immoral. The same Latin permission that lets you drive a car here lets a libertine indulge every appetite.

Common Collocations

• 1.licentious behavior放荡的行为
• 2.licentious lifestyle放荡的生活方式
• 3.licentious conduct放荡的举止

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The novel was banned for its licentious portrayal of court life.

• 2.

  He led a licentious lifestyle that scandalized his neighbors.

• 3.

  Critics accused the play of being crude and licentious.

Synonym Comparison