legitimate

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   authorized, sanctioned by, or in accordance with law

   a legitimate government

2. 2
   adj

   in accordance with recognized or accepted standards or principles

   legitimate advertising practices

3. 3
   adj

   In accordance with the law or established legal forms and requirements.

   Rodwell was sent off by referee Martin Atkinson - who has shown 15 red cards since the start of last season - after 23 minutes for what appeared to be a legitimate challenge on Suarez.

4. 4
   adj

   Conforming to known principles, or established or accepted rules or standards; valid.

   legitimate reasoning; a legitimate standard or method

5. 5
   adj

   Authentic, real, genuine.

   legitimate poems of Chaucer; legitimate inscriptions

6. 6
   noun

   A person born to a legally married couple.

   But should a “holy alliance of legitimates” extinguish it, it will be but for a season.

7. 7
   adj

   of marriages and offspring

8. 8
   adj

   based on known statements or events or conditions

Etymology

From Middle English legitimat, legytymat, from Medieval Latin lēgitimātus, perfect passive participle of Latin lēgitimō (“to make legal”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from Latin lēgitimus (“lawful”), originally "fixed by law, in line with the law," from Latin lēx (“law”). Originally "lawfully begotten". The noun was derived from the adjective within English or earlier by substantivization (see -ate (noun-forming suffix)), the verb from the adjective by conversion (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)).