disorderly conduct

noun

: a petty offense chiefly against public order and decency that falls short of an indictable misdemeanor

Examples of disorderly conduct in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

He was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. —Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 25 Apr. 2026

Lil Tjay was briefly jailed on suspicion of misdemeanor disorderly conduct-affray before he was released on $500 bond. —Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 24 Apr. 2026

Two charges of disorderly conduct against Havens were dropped. —Addison Wright, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026

The councilmember was arrested and faces two counts of disorderly conduct and obstructing governmental administration, police said. —Melissa Russo, NBC news, 23 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1786, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for disorderly conduct

• abduct
• construct
• deduct
• destruct
• induct
• instruct
• obstruct
• aqueduct
• deconstruct
• reconstruct
• bucked
• chucked

Legal Definition

disorderly conduct

noun

dis·​or·​der·​ly conduct

: conduct that is likely to lead to a disturbance of the public peace or that offends public decency

also : the petty offense of engaging in disorderly conduct compare breach of the peace

Note: The term disorderly conduct is used in statutes to identify various acts against the public peace. It has been held to include the use of obscene language in public, the blocking of public ways, and the making of threats. A statute must identify acts that constitute disorderly conduct with sufficient clarity in order to avoid being held unconstitutional because of vagueness.