legend
[lej-uh nd]
- a nonhistorical or unverifiable story handed down by tradition from earlier times and popularly accepted as historical.
- the body of stories of this kind, especially as they relate to a particular people, group, or clan: the winning of the West in American legend.
- an inscription, especially on a coat of arms, on a monument, under a picture, or the like.
- a table on a map, chart, or the like, listing and explaining the symbols used.Compare key1(def 8).
- Numismatics. inscription(def 8).
- a collection of stories about an admirable person.
- a person who is the center of such stories: She became a legend in her own lifetime.
- Archaic. a story of the life of a saint, especially one stressing the miraculous or unrecorded deeds of the saint.
- Obsolete. a collection of such stories or stories like them.
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Origin of legend
1300–50; 1900–05 for def 4; Middle English legende written account of a saint's life < Medieval Latin legenda literally, (lesson) to be read, noun use of feminine of Latin legendus, gerund of legere to read; so called because appointed to be read on respective saints' days
Synonyms
See more synonyms for legend on Thesaurus.com1. Legend, fable, myth refer to fictitious stories, usually handed down by tradition (although some fables are modern). Legend, originally denoting a story concerning the life of a saint, is applied to any fictitious story, sometimes involving the supernatural, and usually concerned with a real person, place, or other subject: the legend of the Holy Grail. A fable is specifically a fictitious story (often with animals or inanimate things as speakers or actors) designed to teach a moral: a fable about industrious bees. A myth is one of a class of stories, usually concerning gods, semidivine heroes, etc., current since primitive times, the purpose of which is to attempt to explain some belief or natural phenomenon: the Greek myth about Demeter.
Antonyms
1. fact.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for legend
Contemporary Examples
Founded by German monks in present-day Old Town Stockholm, Zum Franziskaner has become a legend amongst locals and tourists.
Without proof of this kind, the story of the lost legions is just a legend.
The last straw was when Congressman John Lewis—the Civil Rights legend—came out in support of Hillary Clinton in October 2007.
The Valerie Jarrett I Know: How She Saved the Obama Campaign and Why She’s IndispensableJoshua DuBois
November 18, 2014
She was also an autodidact, an illegitimate girl from the provinces whose intelligence became the stuff of legend.
That, too, is the test for Cadillac—to resuscitate a legend.
Historical Examples
The other, and even more popular, legend is that of "The Harmonious Blacksmith."
HandelEdward J. Dent
True child of Alsace, he revelled in local folklore and legend.
In the Heart of VosgesMatilda Betham-Edwards
The "accursed" gold of legend is often dragon-guarded and placed under a spell.
BeowulfUnknown
Enter the first division, and a legend at your feet indicated the ten-cent territory.
Meadow GrassAlice Brown
Then, too, there was quite a legend attached to this pretty girl.
My Double LifeSarah Bernhardt
legend
- a popular story handed down from earlier times whose truth has not been ascertained
- a group of such storiesthe Arthurian legend
- a modern story that has taken on the characteristics of a traditional legendary tale
- a person whose fame or notoriety makes him a source of exaggerated or romanticized tales or exploits
- an inscription or title, as on a coin or beneath a coat of arms
- explanatory matter accompanying a table, map, chart, etc
- a story of the life of a saint
- a collection of such stories
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Word Origin
C14 (in the sense: a saint's life or a collection of saints' lives): from Medieval Latin legenda passages to be read, from Latin legere to read
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 legend
n.
early 14c., "narrative dealing with a happening or an event," from Old French legende (12c., Modern French légende) and directly from Medieval Latin legenda "legend, story," literally "(things) to be read," on certain days in church, etc., from Latin legendus, neuter plural gerundive of legere "to read, gather, select" (see lecture (n.)).
Used originally of saints' lives; extended sense of "nonhistorical or mythical story" first recorded late 14c. Meaning "writing or inscription" (especially on a coin or medal) is from 1610s; on a map, illustration, etc., from 1903.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper