Meaning & use
martial law
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountablelegal
Control of a region or country by the army, which replaces normal civilian authority, often during a war, rebellion or disaster.
Grammar: Uncountable: declare martial law, under martial law.
Patterns
- declare martial law
- under martial law
The president declared martial law after the riots spread.
Citizens lived under martial law for nearly a year.
Martial law ended when the elected government returned.
Common combinations
- declare martial law
- The governor threatened to declare martial law.
- impose martial law
- Troops imposed martial law across the capital.
- under martial law
- The town was under martial law for a week.
- lift martial law
- Officials lifted martial law once order returned.
- end martial law
- Protesters demanded an end to martial law.
Synonyms and how they differ
- military rule
- Military rule describes a lasting government by the army, while martial law is often a short emergency measure.
- state of emergency
- A state of emergency gives extra powers but may stay in civilian hands, unlike martial law.
- curfew
- A curfew restricts movement at certain hours and is only one possible part of martial law.
- junta
- A junta is the group of officers that governs, while martial law is the kind of rule they impose.
Opposites
Word family
- martial adjective
- relating to war or the army
- court-martial noun
- a military trial
- marshal noun
- a high-ranking officer or official
- law noun
- a rule enforced by authority
Commonly confused: martial law or marshal law?
martial law vs marshal law
Marshal law is a common misspelling; the word is martial, from the Roman god of war Mars.
Practice
Soldiers took charge of the city's government after the leader declared ___.
Choose one answer.
Martial law is rule by the military. Civil and common law are normal civilian legal systems.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “martial law”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.