legitimacy

[li-jit-uh-muh-see]

noun

1. the state or quality of being legitimate.

   Synonyms: rightfulness, legality, lawfulness

Other Word Forms

• nonlegitimacy noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of legitimacy¹

First recorded in 1685–95; legitim(ate) + -acy

Example Sentences

But this week, she says she was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement after officers questioned the legitimacy of her tribal ID, calling it “fake.”

Read more on Salon

A growing number of EU leaders are starting to admit that their legitimacy depends on responding effectively to electoral impulses.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Concerns have been raised over the professionalism and legitimacy of the Women's League Cup quarter-final and semi-final draw, which was conducted by a social media influencer.

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Legal experts questioned the legitimacy of the Pentagon’s investigation.

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Like the climate crisis or the crisis of democratic legitimacy, the affordability crisis has become an umbrella term for countless loosely connected phenomena.

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Related Words

• authority 
• justice 
• validity