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legality

[lee-gal-i-tee]
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noun, plural le·gal·i·ties.
  1. the state or quality of being in conformity with the law; lawfulness.
  2. attachment to or observance of law.
  3. Usually legalities. a duty or obligation imposed by law.
  4. Theology. reliance on good works for salvation rather than on free grace.
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Origin of legality

1425–75; late Middle English legalite < Medieval Latin lēgālitās. See legal, -ity
Related formspseu·do·le·gal·i·ty, noun, plural pseu·do·le·gal·i·ties.

Synonyms

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1. legitimacy, licitness, validity.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for legalities

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • These gods, with their moralities and legalities and intellectual subtlety, will go under and be starved out of existence.

    The Perfect Wagnerite

    George Bernard Shaw

British Dictionary definitions for legalities

legality

noun plural -ties
  1. the state or quality of being legal or lawful
  2. adherence to legal principles
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for legalities

legality

n.

mid-15c., from Middle French légalité, from Medieval Latin legalitatem (nominative legalitas), from Latin legalis "pertaining to the law" (see legal).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper