allege

[uh-lej]

verb (used with object)

alleged, alleging 

1. to assert without proof.

2. to declare with positiveness; affirm; assert.

   to allege a fact.

   Synonyms: aver, asseverate, state
   Antonyms: deny

3. to declare before a court or elsewhere, as if under oath.

   Synonyms: attest

4. to plead in support of; offer as a reason or excuse.

5. Archaic.,  to cite or quote in confirmation.

allege

/ əˈlɛdʒ /

verb

1. to declare in or as if in a court of law; state without or before proof

   he alleged malpractice

2. to put forward (an argument or plea) for or against an accusation, claim, etc

3. archaic,  to cite or quote, as to confirm

Other Word Forms

• allegeable adjective
• alleger noun
• misallege verb (used with object)
• preallege verb (used with object)
• reallege verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of allege¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English alleg(g)en, probably from Old French aleguer, from Medieval Latin, Latin allēgāre “to adduce in support of a plea” ( allegation ), conflated with Anglo-French, Old French aleg(i)er, “to justify, free,” literally, “to lighten,” from Late Latin alleviāre “to lighten, relieve” ( alleviate ); homonymous Middle English verb alleg(g)en, with literal sense of Old French aleg(i)er, replaced by allay in 16th century

Word History and Origins

Origin of allege¹

C14 aleggen, ultimately from Latin allēgāre to dispatch on a mission, from lēx law

Synonym Study

See maintain.

Example Sentences

In a letter sent Monday to Berkeley Unified, the committee cited “numerous press and whistleblower reports” alleging that since the Oct.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

In 2021, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California sued the department, alleging that it had not produced a single document in response to public records requests made nearly three years before.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

James was indicted in a separate case about two weeks later for alleged mortgage fraud.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Justice Department had alleged that RealPage allowed competing landlords to share competitive data in real time, giving them confidence to raise prices or eliminate discounts without fearing they would be undercut.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Berkley was putting an “absolute” exclusion of coverage for “any actual or alleged use, deployment, or development of Artificial Intelligence” in some liability policies for corporate directors and officers.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• charge 
• cite 
• declare 
• depose 
• maintain 
• recount 
• testify 

When To Use

What does allege mean?

To allege is to make an accusation or claim, especially about a crime or wrongdoing. The word often implies that the thing claimed has not been confirmed or proven or that the claim has been made without proof or before proof is available.Forms of allege include the adjective alleged, the adverb allegedly, and the noun allegation (meaning an accusation or claim).Allege is most commonly used in a legal context and in journalism in reports about crime or other wrongdoing before it has been proven or before someone has been convicted. Using the word alleged allows journalists to talk about allegations without seeming to presume guilt (and getting sued for libel).Example: Investigators are alleging that Mr. Jones stole from the company over a period of 15 years.