legitimacy
[li-jit-uh-muh-see]
- the state or quality of being legitimate.
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Origin of legitimacy
Synonyms
See more synonyms for legitimacy on Thesaurus.comlawfulness, legality, rightfulness.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for legitimacy
Contemporary Examples
In short, Maduro is now facing dual crises: One economic, the other of legitimacy.
Venezuela Says Goodbye to Its Lil Friend, While the Rest of the Continent CheersCatalina Lobo-Guererro
December 20, 2014
At first blush, this practice may have the appearance of legitimacy in cases where detainees refused to eat or drink.
‘Rectal Feeding’ Has Nothing to Do with Nutrition, Everything to Do with TortureRussell Saunders
December 10, 2014
It goes beyond just finding the music unpleasant, it invokes the rhetoric of legitimacy.
The Tudors who succeeded Richard to the throne reinforced their own legitimacy by setting out systematically to trash him.
Having claimed the legitimacy given him by huge support in the streets, al Sisi banned demonstrations that might turn against him.
Historical Examples
Later on, too, he intervenes in France and acknowledges the legitimacy of the Republic.
The Three Cities Trilogy, CompleteEmile Zola
It frightens me—raising my old nightmare of a lawsuit about the legitimacy of my child.
The Woman Thou Gavest MeHall Caine
On the other hand, the house in the street of Consuls was a known out-post of Legitimacy.
The Arrow of GoldJoseph Conrad
For the first time America was posing as the champion of legitimacy and order.
The Education of Henry AdamsHenry Adams
It decided on the validity of the king's marriages and the legitimacy of the king's children.
History of the English PeopleJohn Richard Green
Word Origin and History for legitimacy
n.
1690s, of children; general use by 1836; see legitimate + -cy. Legitimateness an earlier word for it.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper