validity

[vuh-lid-i-tee]

noun

1. the state or quality of being valid.

   to question the validity of the argument.

2. legal soundness or force.

Other Word Forms

• nonvalidity noun
• prevalidity noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of validity¹

First recorded in 1540–50; from Late Latin validitās; equivalent to valid + -ity

Example Sentences

A judge is expected to hear arguments in December on the validity of the appointment of John Sarcone, the acting U.S. attorney in Northern New York.

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The deal would require Ukrainian constitutional changes and a supermajority in parliament to gain validity.

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Nelleman argues the tests lack scientific validity and were developed to study personality traits rather than predict parenting ability.

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Here we find a quote from Michael Longley’s 1966 review of “Death of a Naturalist,” which argued that its “childhood landscape has acquired the validity of myth.”

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The force said interviewing officers had been "trying to understand the validity of his admissions".

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Related Words

• effectiveness 
• efficacy 
• gravity 
• legality 
• legitimacy 
• potency 
• soundness 
• substance