legitimacy
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of legitimacy
First recorded in 1685–95; legitim(ate) + -acy
Explanation
The noun legitimacy means authenticity. If you found an old copy of the Gettysburg Address in your grandmother's attic, you'd have to question its legitimacy when you realized it was written on the back of a car advertisement. Legitimacy comes from the Latin verb legitimare, which means lawful. Legitimacy, then, refers to something that is legal because it meets the specific requirements of the law. The legitimacy of various countries' presidential elections is often discussed, with monitors keeping track of the voting procedures to make sure they follow all the necessary rules.
Vocabulary lists containing legitimacy
Power Suffix: -acy
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President Obama's U.N. Address
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Legitimacy in governance, acceptance of one’s right to rule by the people being ruled.
From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022
Richard H. Fallon Jr., a law professor at Harvard and the author of “Law and Legitimacy in the Supreme Court,” said there were two primary definitions.
From New York Times • Dec. 4, 2021
Legitimacy is a core element in democracy: the belief of the people in the institutions of government and their power to set rules and gain compliance.
From Salon • Jul. 13, 2020
Legitimacy will mean banking, data collection, thoughtful advertising to adult markets, and operating a business that will have 1000x more competition than the industry has experienced thus far.
From Forbes • Jun. 29, 2015
He wanted to see the very ground on which the Principle of Legitimacy was actually asserting itself arms in hand.
From The Arrow of Gold A Story Between Two Notes by Conrad, Joseph
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
