legend

American  

[lej-uhnd] / ˈlɛdʒ ənd /

noun

• legends
  plural

1. a nonhistorical or unverifiable story handed down by tradition from earlier times and popularly accepted as historical.

   Antonyms:

   fact

2. 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.

3. an inscription, especially on a coat of arms, on a monument, under a picture, or the like.

4. a table on a map, chart, or the like, listing and explaining the symbols used.

5. Numismatics. inscription.

6. a collection of stories about an admirable person.

7. a person who is the center of such stories.

   She became a legend in her own lifetime.

8. Archaic. a story of the life of a saint, especially one stressing the miraculous or unrecorded deeds of the saint.

9. Obsolete. a collection of such stories or stories like them.

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legend British  

/ ˈlɛdʒənd /

noun

1. a popular story handed down from earlier times whose truth has not been ascertained

2. a group of such stories

   the Arthurian legend

3. a modern story that has taken on the characteristics of a traditional legendary tale

4. a person whose fame or notoriety makes him a source of exaggerated or romanticized tales or exploits

5. an inscription or title, as on a coin or beneath a coat of arms

6. explanatory matter accompanying a table, map, chart, etc

7. 1. a story of the life of a saint

   2. a collection of such stories

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Synonym Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• legendry
  noun
• prelegend
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• legends
  plural

Etymology

Origin of legend

First recorded in 1300–50; 1900–05 legend for def. 4; Middle English legende “written account of a saint's life,” from 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

Explanation

A legend is a larger-than-life story that gets passed down from one generation to the next — like the legends of Beowulf, Robin Hood, or even Big Foot. Legend comes from the Latin legere, "to read." The Latin word was originally limited to written stories, but in English, legend lost that limitation. Often a legend lives on in the stories that people tell each other. A person can be a legend, too. Anne Frank is a legend for keeping a diary of hidden life in war time, and a less famous person, like a long-serving local teacher, can be a legend to neighborhood kids.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

legend legends

By the time Houston rap legend Scarface — who’s known for his use of heavy bass — hit the stage I realized just how crisp the sound quality was.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

Social media was also awash with tributes to Purja, with many saying that Nepal was in mourning and that the country had lost a "legend" and "many great climbers".

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026

In essence, Nolan chose a superstar cast to drive home the interpretation of Homer’s saga as a legend about fame.

From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026

It looks a little silly—Dodgers legend Orel Hershiser compared it to something typically seen in a beer league softball game—but the results have been extraordinary.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

The legend of my sister’s cleverness is a family story that people mention anytime they want to call me mazloom.

From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri

Fans wrapped around the concourse and emptied the merchandise stand before the delayed first pitch and witnessed a torch passing between the league’s current players and past women’s baseball legends.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026

One of those legends, 99-year-old Maybelle Blair, threw the ceremonial first pitch to San Francisco pitcher Kelsie Whitmore.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026

The reigning 57kg world champion boxer Jaismine Lamboria from India throws punches for a living, but when it comes to handling pressure, she looks to one of her country's most celebrated cricketing legends for inspiration.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

"How can you compare those men to me? I've fought legends in the game and beat them for the titles. They're in their own little group and I'm on top of the Empire State Building."

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

His was the first of a flood of musical responses to the two legends in ensuing decades.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Related Words

• fable
• fiction
• folklore
• lore
• myth
• mythology
• tale
• tradition