alleged

Alleged is an adjective that’s used to describe things that have been claimed. It’s most often used to describe an action or situation, especially a wrongdoing or crime, that someone claims happened but that has not been confirmed or proven.

Alleged can also be used as the past tense of the verb allege, meaning to claim without proof or before proof is available. Such an accusation is called an allegation. The adverb form of alleged is allegedly.

As an adjective, alleged can be correctly pronounced either uh-LEJD or uh-LEJ-id. When it’s used as a verb, it’s always pronounced uh-LEJD.

Alleged 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).

Sometimes, alleged is used to mean doubtful or supposed in a way that’s intended to indicate skepticism about something, as in The alleged genius can’t even run a small company.   

Example: The alleged crime took place when my client was half a state away.

The first records of the word alleged come from the 1400s. Its base word, allege, is recorded around 1300 and ultimately comes from the Latin verb allēgāre, meaning “to dispatch on a mission” or “bring forward as evidence.” The leg part of allege and alleged comes from the root lēx-, which means “law” and forms the basis of words like legal.

Alleged is almost always used in a legal context. It’s typically used when making an accusation that has yet to be proved in a court of law. In many jurisdictions, the law states that a person is innocent until proven guilty. That means that if someone is accused of committing a crime—even if the whole thing was caught on video—they’re not considered guilty until they’re convicted by a jury. Until that happens, journalists use the word alleged to qualify descriptions about the supposed crime.

It’s often applied to actions or events, as in the alleged burglary or the alleged incident. It can also be applied to a person, as in the alleged burglar.

What are some other forms related to alleged?

• allege (verb)
• allegedly (adjective)
• allegation (noun)

What are some synonyms for alleged?

• purported
• supposed

What are some words that share a root or word element with alleged? 

• legal
• legitimate

What are some words that often get used in discussing alleged?

• commit
• claim
• accused
• accusation
• perpetrator
• apparent
• supposed
• crime
• evidence
• proof
• convicted

Alleged is most commonly used in journalism in reports about crimes.

This morning, we arrested NYPD Officer Errick Allen for the alleged murder of Christopher Curro last week on Long Island.

No one is above the law, and my office is committed to ensuring justice is served.

— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) May 21, 2020

This is the story of how Dennis Perry went to prison for two murders even some detectives believe he didn't commit – and how Erik Sparre, an alleged white supremacist who confessed to the crimes, escaped scrutiny for 35 years. I hope you'll read and share. https://t.co/eVqWSh2nPJ

— Joshua Sharpe (@JoshuaWSharpe) May 23, 2020

Incredible news. After more than a quarter century on the run, the alleged financier of the 1994 Rwandan genocide has finally been apprehended in France. ⁦@yashar⁩ https://t.co/LJeiJJUWQA

— Samantha Power (@SamanthaJPower) May 16, 2020

Which of the following words is LEAST likely to be used to refer to something described as alleged? 

A. purported
B. definite
C. possible
D. claimed