to declare with positiveness; affirm; assert: to allege a fact.
3.
to declare before a court or elsewhere, as if under oath.
4.
to plead in support of; offer as a reason or excuse.
5.
Archaic.to cite or quote in confirmation.
Origin: 1275–1325;Middle Englishalleg(g)en, probably < Old Frenchaleguer (< Medieval Latin,Latinallēgāre to adduce in support of a plea; see allegation), conflated with Anglo-French,Old Frenchaleg(i)er to justify, free, literally, to lighten (< Late Latinalleviāre; see alleviate); homonymous Middle English v. alleg(g)en, with literal sense of Old Frenchaleg(i)er, replaced by allay in 16th cent.
Related forms
al·lege·a·ble, adjective
al·leg·er, noun
mis·al·lege, verb (used with object), mis·al·leged, mis·al·leg·ing.
pre·al·lege, verb (used with object), pre·al·leged, pre·al·leg·ing.
re·al·lege, verb (used with object), re·al·leged, re·al·leg·ing.
c.1300; it has the form of one O.Fr. verb and the meaning of another. The form is Anglo-Fr. aleger, from O.Fr. eslegier "to clear at law," from L. ex- "out of" and litigare "bring suit" (see litigate), but eslegier meant "acquit, clear of charges in a lawsuit." It somehow
acquired the meaning of Fr. alléguer, from L. allegare "send for, to bring forth, name, produce in evidence," from ad- "to" + legare "to depute, send" (see legate).