Does 横恋慕 mean illicit love?


それは横恋慕と

横恋慕 means falling in love with someone who is already in a romantic
relationship with someone else.

However, according to the dictionary the translation would be illicit love.
Can someone explain it to me? Why would it be illicit?




According to 明鏡国語辞典:

> よこれんぼ【横恋慕】〘名・自サ変〙すでに **配偶者** や恋人のある人に、横合いから恋をすること。

横恋慕 means "falling in love with someone who is already married or in a
relationship". So 横恋慕 is _not always_ illicit; if you fell in love with
someone who is already married, it would be considered an illicit love.




According to 明鏡国語辞典:

> よこれんぼ【横恋慕】〘名・自サ変〙すでに **配偶者** や恋人のある人に、横合いから恋をすること。

横恋慕 means "falling in love with someone who is already married or in a
relationship". So 横恋慕 is _not always_ illicit; if you fell in love with
someone who is already married, it would be considered an illicit love.

