Standard Lemma guide

under-the-counter

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

adj

Meaning 1

Illicit, obtained or sold furtively.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The village shop seemed to be a bastion of respectability but those in the know could obtain some very questionable under-the-counter material.
  • 1973, Robert Wallace Winslow, Crime in a Free Society: Selections from the President's Commission on Law Traffic and distribution of under-the-counter materials appears to be a very minor ... The total market in under-the-counter materials is estimated to be ...
  • 1988, Gordon Hawkins and Franklin E. Zimring, Pornography in a Free Society, of material classified as "under-the-counter" was being openly exhibited and openly sold.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective satellite

Meaning 2

done or sold illicitly and secretly;

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.