legend

noun

leg·end | \ˈle-jənd

Definition of legend

1a : a story coming down from the past especially : one popularly regarded as historical although not verifiable the legend of a lost continent Arthurian legends

b : a body of such stories a place in the legend of the frontier

c : a popular myth of recent origin the legend of the Loch Ness monster

d : a person or thing that inspires legends a baseball legend

e : the subject of a legend its violence was legend even in its own time— William Broyles Jr.

2a : an inscription or title on an object (such as a coin) The quarter bore the legend "In God We Trust".

b : caption sense 2b The legend identifies the various parts of the illustrated anatomy.

c : an explanatory list of the symbols on a map or chart

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about legend

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Examples of legend in a Sentence

I don't believe the legends I've heard about this forest. the legend of a lost continent He has become a baseball legend. The gravestone bears the legend “Rest in Peace.”

Recent Examples on the Web

Stan Lee—the Marvel Comics legend responsible for cultural icons from Spider-Man and Iron Man to X-Men and Black Panther—has died, according to multiple reports from places like TMZ and The Hollywood Reporter. — Nathan Mattise, Ars Technica, "Legendary Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee has died," 12 Nov. 2018 But legend has it that the earliest grenade was a small box of live vipers which ancient warriors threw into the enemy’s camp. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Five Innovations to Emerge From the First World War," 11 Nov. 2018 Now, the heavy metal legend has revealed the full extent of the painful and terrifying ordeal in an interview with Rolling Stone. — Carolyn L. Todd, SELF, "Ozzy Osbourne Underwent Hand Surgery to Treat Multiple Staph Infections: ‘It Was Agony’," 23 Oct. 2018 More with the legend. Parker's MLW version of the Stud Stable features Hager and up-n-coming tag team The Dirty Blondes. — Jim Varsallone, miamiherald, "Col. Rob Parker, Dirty Blondes and Simon Gotch Talk Major League Wrestling and more," 11 July 2018 The team remains a legend: Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippin, Horace Grant, Bill Cartwright, and coach Phil Jackson. — Steve Heisler, Chicago Reader, "Archive Dive / Sports Former Chicago Bulls guard Craig Hodges was dropped in 1992 for suspicious reasons," 4 June 2018 Further Reading Marvel Comics legend, Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko found dead at 90 Indisputably, Lee's decades-spanning career has spawned some of the most beloved pop-culture characters and franchises of all time. — Nathan Mattise, Ars Technica, "Legendary Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee has died," 12 Nov. 2018 The pics were snapped, leaked, and posted, and an Internet legend was born. — Kara Nesvig, Teen Vogue, "Justin Bieber's Doppelgänger Brad Sousa Is the One Who Ate That Burrito," 29 Oct. 2018 Decorating legend Mario Buatta, known affectionately as the Prince of Chintz, passed away on Monday at the age of 82. — The Editors, ELLE Decor, "Remembering Mario Buatta: Designers, Colleagues, and Clients Share Their Memories of the "Prince of Chintz"," 16 Oct. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'legend.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.