English Reference

Idiom

take the law into one's own hands

Meaning

To punish someone according to one's own idea of justice, without consideration for the role of law enforcement authorities.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Examples

“You should not take the law into your own hands.”

“The neighbors were so angry about the constant noise that they threatened to take the law into their own hands.”

“Frustrated by the police's failure to identify the culprit, the victim felt compelled to take the law into his own hands to seek retribution.”

Examples

simple

“You should not take the law into your own hands.”

contextual

“The neighbors were so angry about the constant noise that they threatened to take the law into their own hands.”

complex

“Frustrated by the police's failure to identify the culprit, the victim felt compelled to take the law into his own hands to seek retribution.”

Key words

Related idioms

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English Reference