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illegitimize

American  
[il-i-jit-uh-mahyz] / ɪl ɪˈdʒɪt əˌmaɪz /
especially British, illegitimise especially british, illegitimatize,

verb (used with object)

illegitimized, illegitimizing

  1. to make illegitimate.

    The decree illegitimized his heirs.

Etymology

Origin of illegitimize

First recorded in 1855–60; illegitim(ate) + -ize

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.

Sometimes they would illegitimize two or three generations in order to find a marriage within the forbidden degrees.

From We Can't Have Everything by Hughes, Rupert

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.