Definition of 'illegitimate'
1. adjective
A person who is illegitimate was born of parents who were not married to each other.
2. adjective
Illegitimate is used to describe activities and institutions that are not in accordance with the law or with accepted standards of what is right.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
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Word Frequency
illegitimate in British English
adjective
noun
4.
an illegitimate person; bastard
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
illegitimacy (ˌilleˈgitimacy) or illegitimateness (ˌilleˈgitimateness) noun
illegitimately (ˌilleˈgitimately)
adverb
Word Frequency
illegitimate in American English
adjective
1.
born of parents not married to each other; bastard
3.
contrary to law or rules; illegal; unlawful
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
illegitimately (ˌilleˈgitimately)
adverb
Word origin
< ML illegitimatus, pp. of illegitimare, to make illegitimate < L illegitimus, not lawful: see in-2 & legitimateWord Frequency
illegitimate in American English
( adjective & noun ˌɪlɪˈdʒɪtəmɪt, verb ˌɪlɪˈdʒɪtəˌmeit) (verb -mated, -mating)
adjective
SYNONYMS 2, 3. See illegal.2.
3.
unlawful; illegal
an illegitimate action
4.
irregular; not in good usage
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
illegitimately adverb
illegitimateness or illegitimation
noun
Word origin
[1530–40; il-2 + legitimate]Examples of 'illegitimate' in a sentence
illegitimate
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Definition of illegitimate from the Collins English Dictionary
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