From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishlegitimatele‧git‧i‧mate1 /ləˈdʒɪtəmət/ ●●○ adjective 1 RIGHT/JUSTIFIEDfair or reasonable That’s a perfectly legitimate question. Most scientists believe it is legitimate to use animals in medical research.2 LEGALacceptable or allowed by law Their business operations are perfectly legitimate.3 SSCMARRYa legitimate child is born to parents who are legally married to each other OPP illegitimate —legitimately adverb a legitimately elected government He complained quite legitimately about his treatment. —legitimacy noun [uncountable] Opponents have questioned the legitimacy of the ruling.
Examples from the Corpus
legitimate• To express constructive criticism and voice well researched concerns is of course healthy and legitimate.• How can I be sure that an on-line business is legitimate?• He is a criminal who runs a legitimate business as well.• legitimate business operations• A meeting which just airs views is quite legitimate but every one present should be aware of it.• Thus the masses have in different ways become legitimate candidates for underdevelopment and misery.• At least three of the dead woman's relatives have a legitimate claim to her house.• The way governments treat their people is a legitimate concern for the international community.• Safety is an obvious and legitimate concern.• The legitimate government was overthrown in a coup.• Tobacco smuggling into the UK is seriously affecting the profits of legitimate importers.• Whether or not they were legitimate, many children failed to survive their early critical years.• The problem is, only one of the companies apparently holds legitimate patent rights to the breakthrough.• The government has refused to recognise the far-right group as a legitimate political party.• He had a legitimate reason for being late.• a legitimate reason• At about the same time, his two legitimate sons died of the plague.• Surely these are all legitimate stratagems for the diarist-and using them would be a pardonable offence.• It is legitimate to suggest that taxes should affect people with higher incomes more than they affect poorer people.• Along with the legitimate uses of force, there may be abuses.perfectly legitimate• The Bucharest police force sees its action as perfectly legitimate.• Their function is to supply realism or local colour, and for these purposes their use is perfectly legitimate.• Elwood was carried off after a perfectly legitimate but massive hit delivered by the Springbok centre.• This may be perfectly legitimate but not all problems can be referred away. 2 Refer the parents for marriage guidance counselling.• Or was there a perfectly legitimate explanation?• It is perfectly legitimate for the police to have that information.• But when the culprits were identified, it turned out that their activities were perfectly legitimate, if a little unusual.• This is a perfectly legitimate inductive inference.legitimatele‧git‧i‧mate2 /lɪˈdʒɪtɪmeɪt/ verb [transitive] the usual American form of legitimize→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
legitimate• The role of Parliament became largely but not wholly one of legitimating the measures put before it.• Liberal democracy has been concerned most explicitly with legitimating the power of the state, or public power.From Longman Business Dictionarylegitimatele‧git‧i‧mate1 /lɪˈdʒɪtəmət/ adjective1LAWoperating according to the lawAlthough most of these shows are legitimate, a growing number are frauds.2reasonable or understandableThere’s a lot of legitimate concern about where the economy is going.legitimatele‧git‧i‧mate2 /lɪˈdʒɪtɪmeɪt/ verb [transitive] another form of LEGITIMIZECorporate power cannot be legitimated merely by reference to the rights of shareholders.→ See Verb tableOrigin legitimate (1400-1500) Medieval Latin past participle of legitimare “to legitimize”, from Latin legitimus “legitimate”, from lex “law” 