legendary

adjective

leg·​end·​ary ˈle-jən-ˌder-ē How to pronounce legendary (audio)
-ˌde-rē
1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of legend or a legend
legendary creatures of the sea
2
: well-known, famous
a legendary football player
legendarily adverb
Choose the Right Synonym for legendary

fictitious, fabulous, legendary, mythical, apocryphal mean having the nature of something imagined or invented.

fictitious implies fabrication and suggests artificiality or contrivance more than deliberate falsification or deception.

fictitious characters

fabulous stresses the marvelous or incredible character of something without necessarily implying impossibility or actual nonexistence.

a land of fabulous riches

legendary suggests the elaboration of invented details and distortion of historical facts produced by popular tradition.

the legendary exploits of Davy Crockett

mythical implies a purely fanciful explanation of facts or the creation of beings and events out of the imagination.

mythical creatures

apocryphal implies an unknown or dubious source or origin or may imply that the thing itself is dubious or inaccurate.

a book that repeats many apocryphal stories

Examples of legendary in a Sentence

legendary creatures from the sea He is the most legendary football player of his time.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The episodes will be told through the lens of five of The Bible’s most legendary women: Sarah and her former slave Hagar, Sarah’s great-niece Rebekah, and Rebekah’s nieces, sisters Leah and Rachel. Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 12 May 2025 The interview is pegged to the legendary NFL coach’s new book, The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football — and comes as Belichick’s relationship with 24-year-old Jordon Hudson continues to make headlines. Anna Lazarus Caplan, People.com, 12 May 2025 Coming on June 7 is a Jaws collaboration celebrating the 50th anniversary of that legendary film. Jean E. Palmieri, Footwear News, 12 May 2025 Built in 1930 and infused with quintessential French Riviera glamour, the cliffside estate’s most legendary claim to fame is one of its former owners. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 11 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for legendary

Word History

First Known Use

1570, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of legendary was in 1570

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Cite this Entry

“Legendary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legendary. Accessed 20 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

legendary

adjective
leg·​end·​ary ˈlej-ən-ˌder-ē How to pronounce legendary (audio)
1
: of or resembling a legend
2

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