legitimate
/lɪˈdʒɪtɪmət/ (bre, ipa) · /lɪˈdʒɪtɪmət/ (ame, ipa) · /li-ˈji-tə-mət/ (ame, mw) · /ləˈdʒɪt.ə.məɪt/ (bre, ipa) · /ləˈdʒɪt̬.ə.məɪt/ (ame, ipa)
legitimate — adjective
- legitimatepositive
- more legitimatecomparative
- most legitimatesuperlative
1. Something that is legitimate is officially allowed or recognized under the legal
Something that is legitimate is officially allowed or recognized under the legal system of a country.
Hari's company proved that its claim to the land was legitimate by showing the original contract.
common pattern: prove + that-clause with legitimate
Constanza asked the hospital's legal team to confirm that her overtime pay was a legitimate right under her contract.
collocation: legitimate right
Before renting out the apartment, Kwame checked that all his permits were still legitimate.
The charity was found to be a legitimate organisation that used donations for medical aid.
- lawful
more direct and technical term for 'permitted by law'; legitimate often also implies moral acceptability beyond bare legality
- legal
more general and common than legitimate; any action that does not break the law is legal
- authorised
suggests official permission from a specific authority rather than the whole legal system
用法筆記
Often used with nouns such as right, claim, business, government, or document to indicate official legal status.
常見錯誤
2. A legitimate reason, feeling, or aim is one that is fair, just, and makes sense
A legitimate reason, feeling, or aim is one that is fair, just, and makes sense according to widely accepted standards.
Eitan had a legitimate concern about the safety of the new playground equipment.
collocation: legitimate concern
Femi missed the morning lecture because his grandmother was hospitalised, and the professor accepted his excuse as legitimate.
collocation: legitimate excuse with specific reason
Shirin raised a legitimate question during the meeting about how the funds would be spent.
Aylin had a legitimate goal of starting an after-school tutoring programme for children in her neighbourhood.
- justifiable
stronger than legitimate, suggesting clear evidence or argument supports the action
- valid
focuses on logical soundness rather than moral fairness
- reasonable
more everyday word; legitimate carries a slightly more formal tone
- unreasonable
direct opposite; lacking fairness or common sense
- unjustifiable
stronger opposite; cannot be defended or excused
用法筆記
Common with nouns like concern, question, reason, complaint, excuse, goal, or objective. Use this sense when no legal framework is involved — the judgement is about fairness and common sense, not law.
常見錯誤
3. Used to describe a child whose parents were in a legal marriage with each other
Used to describe a child whose parents were in a legal marriage with each other when the birth happened.
Mr. Watanabe's death sparked an inheritance dispute over whether his eldest son was a legitimate heir.
concrete scenario: inheritance dispute, legitimate heir
Under Japan's old civil code, only legitimate heirs like Taro could inherit the estate, while his half-brother Kenji received nothing.
collocation: legitimate heir with concrete inheritance scenario
After consulting the parish records, the lawyer confirmed that young Élise was a legitimate child under French inheritance law.
The family records showed that every child in that generation was legitimate according to the church register.
- born in wedlock
the equivalent everyday phrase; 'legitimate' is more formal and legal
- illegitimate
the direct opposite for a child born to unmarried parents
- born out of wedlock
the less formal alternative to illegitimate
用法筆記
Distinguish from adjective sense 1 (LAWFUL): this sense applies only to a person's birth status. In modern law, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children has been abolished in many jurisdictions, but the terms still appear in historical or legal contexts.
常見錯誤
legitimate — verb
- legitimatepresent simple I / you / we / they
- legitimates3rd person singular
- legitimating-ing form
- legitimatedpast simple
1. To make something officially legal, or to give good reasons so that society acce
To make something officially legal, or to give good reasons so that society accepts it as fair and reasonable.
The new law legitimised the use of electric scooters on public bicycle lanes.
pattern: legitimise + noun phrase (activity/thing)
Dr. Mira Okafor's 2022 clinical trial legitimised the use of artemisinin-based therapy for malaria in pregnant women.
pattern: legitimise + practice / therapy with named study
Christopher's gold medal at the Korean national fencing championship legitimised his claim to be the country's top junior athlete.
Quan's promotion to team leader legitimised the company's new policy of promoting junior staff based on skill rather than seniority.
文法句型
legitimate + noun phrase
用法筆記
The verb is most commonly used in the '-ise' spelling (legitimise) in British English, or '-ize' (legitimize) in American English. The bare form 'legitimate' as a verb also exists but is rarer in modern usage — most speakers prefer 'legitimise/legitimize'.
常見錯誤
2. To change the legal position of a child whose parents were not married, so that
To change the legal position of a child whose parents were not married, so that the child holds the same rights in law as one whose parents were married.
After the couple married, they took legal steps to legitimise their daughter under the new civil code.
pattern: legitimise + child + legal context
The court's order legitimised the boy, granting him the right to inherit his father's property.
After Dario and Beatriz got married, their son Pedro was automatically legitimised under Brazilian civil law.
The judge ruled that the man's eldest son should be legitimised after proof of paternity was submitted.
- recognise as legitimate
the longer, more transparent phrase used in modern legal language
文法句型
legitimate + child / son / daughter
用法筆記
In modern legal contexts, this term is becoming less common because many countries have removed the legal distinction between children born inside and outside marriage. The verb appears mostly in historical legal documents or older discussions of family law.