licit

The word licit describes something that is lawful, permitted, or accepted by a legal or official system. It is a formal word, and it is often used when people need to be precise about whether something is allowed. For example, a company may earn money through licit business activity, or a country may try to support licit trade instead of smuggling.

The word is especially useful because it often appears beside its opposite, illicit. That pairing helps make the meaning clear. Licit goods are legal to buy or sell; illicit goods are not. A licit payment comes from a lawful source; an illicit payment may involve crime or fraud. In many real contexts, the word shows up in writing about markets, drugs, weapons, finance, regulation, and public policy.

Even though licit is close in meaning to "legal," it has a slightly more formal and technical feel. It usually points to whether an action, trade, agreement, or source is allowed under the law or under established rules. It does not automatically mean something is morally good; the main idea is that it is permitted.

You are more likely to meet licit in articles, reports, legal writing, or academic discussion than in casual speech. Still, once you know it, the word is easy to use: if something is licit, it is on the allowed side of the line, not the forbidden one.