legitimate

1 of 2

adjective

le·​git·​i·​mate li-ˈji-tə-mət 

1

a

: lawfully begotten

specifically : born in wedlock

b

: having full filial rights and obligations by birth

a legitimate child

2

a

: being exactly as intended or presented : neither spurious nor false

a legitimate grievance

a legitimate claim

a legitimate practitioner

" … we are pretty good at separating legitimate pain from drug-seeking behavior. … "

—Kenneth W. Fogelberg

also : being an actual example of something specified

a legitimate threat to national security

b

: genuinely good, impressive, or capable of success

And if he can fix his start … he is a legitimate contender for gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

—Sean Ingle

3

a

: accordant with law or with established legal forms and requirements

a legitimate government

b

: ruling by or based on the strict principle of hereditary right

a legitimate king

4

: conforming to recognized principles or accepted rules and standards

a legitimate advertising expenditure

a legitimate inference

also : fair or reasonable : valid

She raised some legitimate concerns.

5

: relating to plays acted by professional actors but not including revues, burlesque, or some forms of musical comedy

the legitimate theater

legitimate

2 of 2

verb

le·​git·​i·​mate li-ˈji-tə-ˌmāt 

legitimated; legitimating

transitive verb

: to make (someone or something) legitimate (see legitimate entry 1):

a(1)

: to give legal status or authorization to

(2)

: to show or affirm to be justified

(3)

: to lend authority or respectability to

b

: to give (a child born out of wedlock) the same legal status as a child born in wedlock

legitimation

li-ˌji-tə-ˈmā-shən 

noun

legitimator

li-ˈji-tə-ˌmā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

Adjective

• legal
• justifiable
• lawful

Choose the Right Synonym for legitimate

lawful, legal, legitimate, licit mean being in accordance with law.

lawful may apply to conformity with law of any sort (such as natural, divine, common, or canon).

the lawful sovereign

legal applies to what is sanctioned by law or in conformity with the law, especially as it is written or administered by the courts.

legal residents of the state

legitimate may apply to a legal right or status but also, in extended use, to a right or status supported by tradition, custom, or accepted standards.

a perfectly legitimate question about taxes

licit applies to a strict conformity to the provisions of the law and applies especially to what is regulated by law.

the licit use of drugs by doctors

Examples of legitimate in a Sentence

Adjective

Law books were getting thicker by the week with Supreme Court decisions barring legitimate claims because they weren't timely filed. —John Grisham, The Chamber, 1995

Even in many courtrooms, where there is valid concern about the privacy of defendants, judges recognize that camera coverage serves a legitimate public interest. —New Republic, 22 Feb. 1993

He was indeed already a legitimate child according to the law of Scotland, by the subsequent marriage of his parents. —Sir Walter Scott, The Heart of Mid-Lothian, 1818

legitimate means for achieving success

the legitimate use of firearms

There's no legitimate reason for prescribing this medication to a child.

Verb

Which comes first, the desire to legitimate euthanasia or the nullifying of a distinction between killing and allowing to die? —Daniel Callahan, Commonweal, 2 June 2000

Poland has ceased being a nation with even a pretense of Communist rule, a rule that is legitimated by Marxist ideology. —Irving Kristol, Wall Street Journal, 11 Jan. 1982

… they are more concerned with the ways in which schools and colleges legitimate and maintain inequality than with the ways they devalue and restrict personal autonomy. —Christopher Jencks, New York Times Book Review, 15 Feb. 1976

slang words legitimated by usage

Her tendency to be secretive only serves to legitimate their suspicions.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The Orlando Magic made a huge splash with the trade of Desmond Bane, finally acquiring a guard with legitimate outside shooting capabilities, who can also initiate offensive actions. —Morten Stig Jensen, Forbes.com, 21 June 2025

To review or object to instances where our partners assert a legitimate interest in utilizing your data, please visit our vendors page. —Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 20 June 2025

Verb

In response, elites double down, weaponizing the claim of misinformation to legitimate the stifling of debate. —Jacob Hale Russell, TIME, 4 Mar. 2025

The best security feels effortless to legitimate users while remaining impenetrable to attackers. —Jitender Jain, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Verb

Middle English legitimat, from Medieval Latin legitimatus, past participle of legitimare to legitimate, from Latin legitimus legitimate, from leg-, lex law

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for legitimate

• illegitimate

Kids Definition

legitimate

1 of 2 adjective

le·​git·​i·​mate li-ˈjit-ə-mət 

1

: born of parents who are married

legitimate children

2

: lawful

a legitimate claim

3

: being in keeping with what is right or with standards

a legitimate excuse

legitimately adverb

legitimate

2 of 2 verb

le·​git·​i·​mate li-ˈjit-ə-ˌmāt 

legitimated; legitimating

: to make lawful or legal

legitimation

-ˌjit-ə-ˈmā-shən 

noun

Legal Definition

legitimate

1 of 2 adjective

le·​git·​i·​mate lə-ˈji-tə-mət 

1

: conceived or born of parents lawfully married to each other or having been made through legal procedure equal in status to one so conceived or born

also : having rights and obligations under the law as the child of such birth

2

: being neither spurious nor false

a legitimate grievance

3

: being in accordance with law or with established legal forms and requirements

a legitimate government

4

: conforming to recognized principles or accepted rules and standards

a legitimate claim of entitlement

a legitimate business reason

legitimately adverb

legitimate

2 of 2 transitive verb

le·​git·​i·​mate lə-ˈji-tə-ˌmāt 

legitimated; legitimating

: to make legitimate: as

a

: to give legal status or authorization to

b

: to show or affirm to be justified or have merit

c

: to put (an illegitimate child) in the state of a child born of married parents before the law by legal means compare filiate

legitimation

lə-ˌji-tə-ˈmā-shən 

noun

Etymology

Adjective

Medieval Latin legitimatus, past participle of legitimare to give legal status to, from Latin legitimus legally sanctioned, from leg-, lex law