noun

la ley

law

Regla o conjunto de normas creadas por un gobierno o autoridad para mantener el orden y la justicia en una sociedad.

Definition & meaning

Ley means law: a rule established by a government or other authority and enforced within a community or country. It can refer to a single law or to the legal system more generally.

It can also mean a general principle or regularity, especially in science or nature, as in a law describing how something behaves.

Grammar & Word origin

Ley is a feminine noun. Its plural is leyes . It comes from Latin lex, meaning “law”; it is not ordinarily divided into smaller meaningful parts in modern Spanish.

Synonyms & antonyms

norma means a rule or standard more broadly; it does not necessarily have the force of law.
regla can mean a rule or guideline, often in a particular activity or situation.
legislación refers to a body or system of laws, rather than usually to one individual law.
estatuto is a formal regulation or legal provision, often applying to a particular organization or area.

There is no exact antonym for ley. Depending on the context, ilegalidad (“illegality”) or anarquía (“anarchy”) may express a contrast, but neither is a direct opposite.