Idiom
shout fire in a crowded theater
Meaning
To say something which is not protected by the First Amendment's right to freedom of speech because it would incite violence, panic or lawlessness.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“You cannot shout fire in a crowded theater just for fun.”
“The judge explained that free speech has limits, such as when you shout fire in a crowded theater and cause a dangerous panic.”
“Legal scholars often cite the example of someone who chooses to shout fire in a crowded theater to illustrate why certain forms of speech are not protected by law.”
Examples
simple
“You cannot shout fire in a crowded theater just for fun.”
contextual
“The judge explained that free speech has limits, such as when you shout fire in a crowded theater and cause a dangerous panic.”
complex
“Legal scholars often cite the example of someone who chooses to shout fire in a crowded theater to illustrate why certain forms of speech are not protected by law.”
Key words
Related idioms
- Updated