Nearby Words
adjective
1.
according to law; lawful: the property's legitimate owner.
2.
in accordance with established rules, principles, or standards.
3.
born in wedlock or of legally married parents: legitimate children.
4.
in accordance with the laws of reasoning; logically inferable; logical: a legitimate conclusion.
5.
EXPANDresting on or ruling by the principle of hereditary right: a legitimate sovereign.
6.
not spurious or unjustified; genuine: It was a legitimate complaint.
7.
of the normal or regular type or kind.
8.
COLLAPSETheater. of or pertaining to professionally produced stage plays, as distinguished from burlesque, vaudeville, television, motion pictures, etc.: an actor in the legitimate theater.
verb (used with object)
9.
to make lawful or legal; pronounce or state as lawful: Parliament legitimated his accession to the throne.
10.
to establish as lawfully born: His bastard children were afterward legitimated by law.
11.
to show or declare to be legitimate or proper: He was under obligation to legitimate his commission.
12.
to justify; sanction or authorize: His behavior was legitimated by custom.
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Legitimate
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is lollygag. Does it mean:
| to spend time idly; loaf. |
| to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable. |
noun
13.
the legitimate, the legitimate theater or drama.
14.
a person who is established as being legitimate.
Origin:
1485–95; < Medieval Latin lēgitimātus (past participle of lēgitimāre to make lawful). See legitim, -ate1
1485–95; < Medieval Latin lēgitimātus (past participle of lēgitimāre to make lawful). See legitim, -ate1
Related forms
le·git·i·mate·ly, adverb
le·git·i·mate·ness, noun
le·git·i·ma·tion, noun
de·le·git·i·mate, verb (used with object), -mat·ed, -mat·ing.
de·le·git·i·ma·tion, noun
EXPANDnon·le·git·i·mate, adjective
post·le·git·i·ma·tion, noun
qua·si-le·git·i·mate, adjective
qua·si-le·git·i·mate·ly, adverb
COLLAPSESynonyms
1. legal, licit. 2. sanctioned. 4. valid. 9. legalize.
1. legal, licit. 2. sanctioned. 4. valid. 9. legalize.
Antonyms
1. illegitimate.
1. illegitimate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
|
Link To legitimate
Collins
World English Dictionary
| legitimate | |
| —adj | |
| 1. | born in lawful wedlock; enjoying full filial rights |
| 2. | conforming to established standards of usage, behaviour, etc |
| 3. | based on correct or acceptable principles of reasoning |
| 4. | reasonable, sensible, or valid: a legitimate question |
| 5. | authorized, sanctioned by, or in accordance with law |
| 6. | of, relating to, or ruling by hereditary right: a legitimate monarch |
| 7. | of or relating to a body of famous long-established plays as distinct from films, television, vaudeville, etc: the legitimate theatre |
| —vb | |
| 8. | (tr) to make, pronounce, or show to be legitimate |
| [C15: from Medieval Latin lēgitimātus made legal, from lēx law] | |
| le'gitimacy | |
| —n | |
| le'gitimateness | |
| —n | |
| le'gitimately | |
| —adv | |
| legiti'mation | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
legitimate
late 15c., "having the status of one lawfully begotten," from M.L. legitimatus, pp. of legitimare "make lawful, declare to be lawful," from L. legitimus "lawful," originally "in line with the law," from lex (gen. legis) "law." Transferred sense of "genuine, real" is attested from 1818.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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