as in spuriousness
the state or fact of being born out of wedlock
she had learned of her illegitimacy while rummaging through old family records in the attic
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Recent Examples of illegitimacy
Nan’s illegitimacy became a big subject of conversation last season when the news leaked out ahead of her engagement to Theo.
—
Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 18 June 2025
The power of the Grand Secretariat and the illegitimacy of dissent were hallmarks of imperial rule.
—Frank Lavin, Forbes.com, 4 May 2025
From this perspective, the familiar elements of the Nativity—the stable, the shepherds, the Magi—were not meant to paper over the embarrassment at Jesus’ illegitimacy.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2025
But doing so would give Yoon the best chance of upending the entrenched narrative of colonial-authoritarian illegitimacy that has prevented South Korea and Japan from settling their disputes over the past for so long.
—Eun A Jo, Foreign Affairs, 23 Nov. 2022
See All Example Sentences for illegitimacy
Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 18 June 2025
The power of the Grand Secretariat and the illegitimacy of dissent were hallmarks of imperial rule.
—Frank Lavin, Forbes.com, 4 May 2025
From this perspective, the familiar elements of the Nativity—the stable, the shepherds, the Magi—were not meant to paper over the embarrassment at Jesus’ illegitimacy.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2025
But doing so would give Yoon the best chance of upending the entrenched narrative of colonial-authoritarian illegitimacy that has prevented South Korea and Japan from settling their disputes over the past for so long.
—Eun A Jo, Foreign Affairs, 23 Nov. 2022
See All Example Sentences for illegitimacy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illegitimacy
bastardy
Noun
-
Baseness, bastardy, base They are also reflected in the game’s popularity, especially among those with the most detached view of America: the millions of immigrants who have arrived over baseball’s history.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
8 June 2019
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Johanna Luthman, a historian at the University of North Georgia, has worked for years to understand the practice and repercussions of fornication, adultery and bastardy among the early 17th-century English aristocracy.—
Richard Davenport-Hines,
WSJ,
11 Aug. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Illegitimacy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illegitimacy. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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