Third person singular present of violate; to break, infringe, or transgress against rules, laws, agreements, or principles. It can also mean to treat something sacred with disrespect.
From Latin 'violatus', past participle of 'violare' meaning 'to treat with violence' or 'to dishonor'. The root 'vis' means force or violence, showing how violation originally implied forceful transgression.
The concept of violation exists across all human societies but varies dramatically - what violates norms in one culture might be perfectly acceptable in another. Even in nature, many symbiotic relationships begin as violations of individual organisms' boundaries.
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