legitimate

(lə-jĭt'ə-mĭt)
adj.

1. Being in compliance with the law; lawful: a legitimate business.
2. Being in accordance with established or accepted patterns and standards: legitimate advertising practices.
3. Based on logical reasoning; reasonable: a legitimate solution to the problem.
4. Authentic; genuine: a legitimate complaint.
5. Born of legally married parents: legitimate issue.
6. Of, relating to, or ruling by hereditary right: a legitimate monarch.
7. Of or relating to drama of high professional quality that excludes burlesque, vaudeville, and some forms of musical comedy: the legitimate theater.

tr.v., -mat·ed, -mat·ing, -mates. (-māt')
To make legitimate, as:

1. To give legal force or status to; make lawful.
2. To establish (a child born out of wedlock) as legitimate by legal means.
3. To sanction formally or officially; authorize.
4. To demonstrate or declare to be justified.

[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.]

legitimately le·git'i·mate·ly adv.
legitimateness le·git'i·mate·ness n.
legitimation le·git'i·ma'tion n.
legitimator le·git'i·mat'or (-māt'ər) n.

View more Law & Legal Issues videos

adjective

1. Within, allowed by, or sanctioned by the law: innocent, lawful, legal, licit. Slang legit. See law.
2. Being so legitimately: rightful, true. See true/false.

verb

To make lawful: legalize, legitimatize, legitimize. See law.

adj

Definition: authentic, valid, legal
Antonyms: illegal, illegitimate, invalid, unlawful, unwarranted

This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

To make lawful, such as when a child is born prior to the parents' marriage and they subsequently wed and thereby confer upon the child the same legal status as those born in lawful wedlock.

That which is lawful, legal, recognized by law, or in accordance with law, such as legitimate children or legitimate authority; real, valid, or genuine.

See: illegitimacy.

IN BRIEF: Having the sanction of law or established custom.

To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival. — Wendell Berry

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

For a list of words related to legitimate, see:

• Pregnancy and Birth - legitimate: (adj) lawfully begotten and born in wedlock
• Proper, Courteous, Refined, or Puritanical

---

See words rhyming with "legitimate."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Legitimate.

Common misspelling(s) of legitimate

• legitamate

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - gøre lovlig, berettige
v. tr. - legitimere

Nederlands (Dutch)
wettig, legitiem, terecht, acceptabel, toegestaan, logisch, geldig, erkend, echt (kind), legitimeren, wettigen, rechtvaardigen, echten, gevestigd toneel (stuk)

Français (French)
adj. - légitime, juste, valable, régulier, justifiable, (Théât) vrai
v. tr. - légaliser, rendre légal, justifier
n. - (Jur) légitimation, légalisation

Deutsch (German)
adj. - legitim, ehelich, berechtigt, rechtmäßig, gesetzmäßig
v. - legitimieren, rechtfertigen
n. - eheliches Kind, rechtmäßiger Herrscher, echtes Drama

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - νόμιμος, σύννομος, εύλογος, λογικός, γνήσιος, αυθεντικός
v. - νομιμοποιώ
n. - νόμιμο τέκνο

Italiano (Italian)
legittimare, giustificato, legittimo

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - legítimo, legal
v. - legitimar, legalizar

Русский (Russian)
узаконивать, усыновлять, законнорожденный ребенок, законный правитель, законнорожденный, законный, обоснованный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - justo, válido, legítimo, auténtico
v. tr. - legitimar
n. - el legítimo (teatro clásico)

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - legitim, laglig, rättmätig, lagligt berättigad, född inom äktenskapet, äkta, inomäktenskaplig, befogad, välgrundad, rimlig, egentlig, reguljär, standard-
v. - legitimera, förklara för äkta, stadfästa, göra laglig, legalisera, berättiga, rättfärdi
n. - barn fött inom äktenskapet

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
合法的, 婚生的, 正当的, 认为正当, 使合法, 立为嫡嗣

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 合法的, 婚生的, 正當的
v. tr. - 認為正當, 使合法, 立為嫡嗣

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 합법의 , 본격적인, 합리적인, 정통한, 진정한
v. tr. - 합법화 하다 , 정당화 하다, 시인하다

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 合法の, 嫡出の, 合理的な, 本格的な, 道理にかなった
v. - 合法と認める, 合法化する

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) شرعي, صحيح أو حقيقي, منطقي, تقليدي (فعل) يجعله شرعيا, يجيز أو يحلل (الاسم) الشرعيه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮חוקי, כשר, לגיטימי‬
v. tr. - ‮עשה לחוקי ע"י צו או הוכחה‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.