legitimate
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le·git·i·mate
(lə-jĭt′ə-mĭt)adj.
1.
a. Being in compliance with the law; lawful: a legitimate business.
b. Being in accordance with established or accepted rules and standards: legitimate advertising practices.
c. Valid or justifiable: a legitimate complaint.
d. Based on logical reasoning: a legitimate deduction.
2. Born of legally married parents: legitimate offspring.
3. Of, relating to, or ruling by hereditary right: a legitimate monarch.
4. Of or relating to drama of high professional quality that excludes burlesque, vaudeville, and some forms of musical comedy: the legitimate theater.
tr.v. (-māt′) le·git·i·mat·ed, le·git·i·mat·ing, le·git·i·mates
To legitimize.
[Middle English legitimat, born in wedlock, from Medieval Latin lēgitimātus, law-worthy, past participle of lēgitimāre, to make lawful, from Latin lēgitimus, legitimate, from lēx, lēg-, law; see leg- in Indo-European roots.]
le·git′i·mate·ly adv.
le·git′i·mate·ness n.
le·git′i·ma′tion n.
le·git′i·mat′or (-māt′ər) n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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. (Law) authorized, sanctioned by, or in accordance with law
6. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) of, relating to, or ruling by hereditary right: a legitimate monarch.
7. (Theatre) of or relating to a body of famous long-established plays as distinct from films, television, vaudeville, etc: the legitimate theatre.
vb
(tr) to make, pronounce, or show to be legitimate
[C15: from Medieval Latin lēgitimātus made legal, from lēx law]
leˈgitimacy, leˈgitimateness n
leˈgitimately adv
leˌgitiˈmation n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
le•git•i•mate
(adj., n. lɪˈdʒɪt ə mɪt; v. -ˌmeɪt)adj., v. -mat•ed, -mat•ing,
n. adj.
1. according to law; lawful: the property's legitimate owner.
2. in accordance with established rules, principles, or standards.
3. born of legally married parents: legitimate children.
4. in accordance with the laws of reasoning; valid; logical: a legitimate conclusion.
5. resting on or ruling by the principle of hereditary right: a legitimate sovereign.
6. justified; genuine: a legitimate complaint.
7. of the normal or regular type or kind.
8. of or pertaining to professionally produced stage plays, as distinguished from burlesque, vaudeville, etc.
v.t. 9. to make lawful or legal; pronounce as lawful: Parliament legitimated her accession to the throne.
10. to confer legitimacy upon (a bastard).
11. to show or declare to be legitimate or proper.
12. to justify; sanction or authorize.
n. 13. a person who is established as being legitimate.
[1485–95; < Medieval Latin lēgitimātus, past participle of lēgitimāre to make lawful, derivative of Latin lēgitimus lawful, legal <lēg-, s. of lēx law]
le•git′i•mate•ly, adv.
le•git′i•mate•ness, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
legal
– lawful – legitimate1. 'legal' and 'lawful'
Legal and lawful both mean 'allowed by law'. Lawful is a formal word.
A breath test showed he had drunk more than twice the legal limit for driving.
Capital punishment is legal in many countries.
Hunting is a lawful activity.
All his activities had been perfectly lawful.
2. 'legitimate'
Legitimate means 'correct or acceptable according to a law or rule'.
...a legitimate business transaction.
Legitimate can also mean 'justifiable under the circumstances'.
Religious leaders have a legitimate reason to be concerned.
If someone is legitimate, their parents were married at the time they were born.
...evidence that he was his father's legitimate son.
3. another meaning of 'legal'
Legal also means 'relating to the law'. You cannot use lawful or legitimate with this meaning.
...the British legal system.
...legal language.
4. 'law' in front of nouns
You use law, not 'legal', in front of a noun when you are talking about someone or something connected with the study of law.
...a law student.
He had only just received his law degree.
Law also appears in the names of some places and institutions connected with the law.
...the Law Courts.
...the Law Society.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012
legitimate
Past participle: legitimated
Gerund: legitimating
| Imperative |
|---|
| legitimate |
| legitimate |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | legitimate - make legal; "Marijuana should be legalized" decriminalise, decriminalize, legalise, legalize, legitimatise, legitimatize, legitimise, legitimize countenance, permit, allow, let - consent to, give permission; "She permitted her son to visit her estranged husband"; "I won't let the police search her basement"; "I cannot allow you to see your exam" |
| 2. | legitimate - show or affirm to be just and legitimate | |
| 3. | legitimate - make (an illegitimate child) legitimate; declare the legitimacy of (someone); "They legitimized their natural child" | |
| Adj. | 1. | legitimate - of marriages and offspring; recognized as lawful authorised, authorized - endowed with authority legal - established by or founded upon law or official or accepted rules valid - well grounded in logic or truth or having legal force; "a valid inference"; "a valid argument"; "a valid contract" illegitimate - of marriages and offspring; not recognized as lawful |
| 2. | legitimate - based on known statements or events or conditions; "rain was a logical expectation, given the time of year" valid - well grounded in logic or truth or having legal force; "a valid inference"; "a valid argument"; "a valid contract" | |
| 3. | legitimate - in accordance with recognized or accepted standards or principles; "legitimate advertising practices" constituted, established - brought about or set up or accepted; especially long established; "the established social order"; "distrust the constituted authority"; "a team established as a member of a major league"; "enjoyed his prestige as an established writer"; "an established precedent"; "the established Church" | |
| 4. | legitimate - authorized, sanctioned by, or in accordance with law; "a legitimate government" legal - established by or founded upon law or official or accepted rules |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
legitimate
adjective
1. lawful, real, true, legal, acknowledged, sanctioned, genuine, proper, authentic, statutory, authorized, rightful, kosher (informal), dinkum (Austral & N.Z. informal), legit (slang), licit They have demanded the restoration of the legitimate government.
lawful illegal, false, unlawful, fraudulent, illegitimate
lawful illegal, false, unlawful, fraudulent, illegitimate
2. reasonable, just, correct, sensible, valid, warranted, logical, justifiable, well-founded, admissible That's a perfectly legitimate fear.
reasonable unfair, unreasonable, unfounded, unjustified, unsound
reasonable unfair, unreasonable, unfounded, unjustified, unsound
verb
1. legitimize, allow, permit, sanction, authorize, legalize, give the green light to, legitimatize, pronounce lawful We want to legitimate this process by passing a law.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
legitimate
adjectiveverb
To make lawful:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
شَرْعي
legitimnízákonný
ægtebarnlegitimlegitimtlovlig
lögmæturskilgetinn
paremtas įstatymais
laulībā dzimislikumīgs
upravičenzakonski
legitimate
[lɪˈdʒɪtɪmɪt]A. ADJ
1. (= lawful) [government, right, power] → legítimo; [business] → legal
he has a legitimate claim to the property → tiene el derecho legítimo de reivindicar la propiedad
he has a legitimate claim to the property → tiene el derecho legítimo de reivindicar la propiedad
2. (= valid) [reason, argument, target] → válido; [complaint, conclusion] → justificado; [interest] → legítimo
it is perfectly legitimate to ask questions → preguntar está perfectamente justificado
it is perfectly legitimate to ask questions → preguntar está perfectamente justificado
3. (Jur) [son, daughter] → legítimo
B. VT = legitimize
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
legitimate
[lɪˈdʒɪtəmət] adj (= accepted by law) [government, organization] → légitime
(= well-founded, valid) [feeling, fear] → légitime; [claim, complaint, reason] → légitime; [target] → légitime
to have a legitimate claim to sth → pouvoir légitimement prétendre à qch
They have legitimate claims to political asylum → Ils peuvent légitimement prétendre à l'asile politique.
to have a legitimate claim to sth → pouvoir légitimement prétendre à qch
They have legitimate claims to political asylum → Ils peuvent légitimement prétendre à l'asile politique.
(= born in wedlock) [child] → légitime
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
legitimate
adj
(= reasonable) → berechtigt; excuse → begründet; reason → zulässig; target, purpose → legitim; his use of the company car was not legitimate → er war nicht berechtigt, den Firmenwagen zu benutzen; it’s perfectly legitimate to ask questions → es ist vollkommen in Ordnung, Fragen zu stellen; it’s legitimate for them to behave like that → sie dürfen sich so benehmen
(= born in wedlock) → ehelich
(Theat) the legitimate theatre → das traditionelle Sprechtheater
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
legitimate
[lɪˈdʒɪtɪmɪt] adj (lawful) → legittimo/a; (argument, cause, excuse) → buono/a, valido/a; (complaint) → legittimo/a; (conclusion) → logico/aCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
legitimate
(liˈdʒitimət) adjective1. lawful. Is this procedure perfectly legitimate?
2. (of a child) born to parents who are married to each other.
leˈgitimately adverbleˈgitimacy noun
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
legitimate
a. legítimo-a, auténtico-a.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012