as in lawfulness
the quality or state of being legal
the legitimacy of the military dictatorship was not recognized by most other nations
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Recent Examples of legitimacy
The legitimacy of Syed’s conviction was questioned by the podcast, contributing to his release from prison in 2022.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 June 2026
Boy Throb is some sort of plant directly harms their mission to prove their legitimacy to the government, Sobania said.
—Max Bacall , Tessa Hoyos , Nikos Degruccio, FOXNews.com, 6 June 2026
And so there is a little bit of a sense of legitimacy about it.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026
However, rumors surrounding the incident quickly began swirling with some in Dorit's personal circle questioning the legitimacy of the reports.
—Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for legitimacy
Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 June 2026
Boy Throb is some sort of plant directly harms their mission to prove their legitimacy to the government, Sobania said.
—Max Bacall , Tessa Hoyos , Nikos Degruccio, FOXNews.com, 6 June 2026
And so there is a little bit of a sense of legitimacy about it.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026
However, rumors surrounding the incident quickly began swirling with some in Dorit's personal circle questioning the legitimacy of the reports.
—Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for legitimacy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for legitimacy
Noun
-
That decision found a lower court judge who had sided with Khalil and freed him from a Louisiana lockup lacked the legal authority to weigh in on the lawfulness of the detention.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
22 May 2026
-
The ruling follows a legal challenge by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) over the lawfulness of a December 2022 parliament vote.—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
8 May 2026
Noun
-
The debate surrounding grizzly hunting tends to extend beyond simple questions of legality.—
Amber Harding OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
-
Federal attorneys didn’t argue if arrest was justified Castañeda Mondragón filed a writ of habeas corpus to challenge the legality of his detention.—
Mara H. Gottfried,
Twin Cities,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Legitimacy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/legitimacy. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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