litigate

verb

lit·​i·​gate ˈli-tə-ˌgāt 

litigated; litigating

intransitive verb

: to carry on a legal contest by judicial (see judicial sense 1a) process

… only states can litigate before this Court …

—R. H. Heindel

transitive verb

1

: to decide and settle in a court of law

litigate a claim

2

archaic : dispute

litigable

ˈli-ti-gə-bəl 

adjective

Examples of litigate in a Sentence

They agree to litigate all disputes in this court.

The company's unwillingness to make a deal increased her desire to litigate.

Recent Examples on the Web

The administration has made substantive steps to begin work on a number of projects, despite the fact they are still being litigated. — Arkansas Online, 20 Sep. 2026

The issue is being litigated in courts across the country, including in Louisiana, where a state judge recently granted an injunction allowing players who signed with NFL teams over the summer to play at LSU. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 16 Sep. 2026

But jurisdiction over private property within reservations is litigated case-by-case. — Savannah Peters, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2026

That will likely be settled by whoever litigates first, and no company should want to be the test case. — Tomer Warschauer Nuni, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin litigatus, past participle of litigare, from lit-, lis lawsuit + agere to drive — more at agent

First Known Use

1615, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for litigate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate
• angulate

Kids Definition

litigate

verb

lit·​i·​gate ˈlit-ə-ˌgāt 

litigated; litigating

: to carry on a lawsuit

litigation

ˌlit-ə-ˈgā-shən 

noun

litigator

ˈlit-ə-ˌgāt-ər 

noun

Legal Definition

litigate

verb

lit·​i·​gate ˈli-tə-ˌgāt 

litigated; litigating

intransitive verb

: to seek resolution of a legal contest by judicial process

chose to litigate rather than settle

transitive verb

: to make the subject of a suit

litigate a claim

broadly : to contest or resolve in court

litigate an insanity defense

litigable

ˈli-tə-gə-bəl 

adjective

litigation

ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən 

noun

litigational

-shə-nəl

adjective

litigatory

ˈli-tə-gə-ˌtōr-ē

adjective

Etymology

Latin litigatus, past participle of litigare, from lit-, lis lawsuit + agere to drive