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Webster 1913 Edition

Legal

Le′gal

(lē′gal)
,
Adj.
[L.
legalis
, fr.
lex
,
legis
, law; prob. orig., that which lies or is fixed (cf. L.
lectus
bed), and if so akin to E.
lie
,
law
: cf. F.
légal
. Cf.
Lie
to be prostrate,
Loyal
,
Leal
.]
1.
Created by, permitted by, in conformity with, or relating to, law;
as, a
legal
obligation; a
legal
standard or test; a
legal
procedure; a
legal
claim; a
legal
trade; anything is
legal
which the laws do not forbid
.
2.
(Theol.)
(a)
According to the law of works, as distinguished from free grace; or resting on works for salvation.
(b)
According to the old or Mosaic dispensation; in accordance with the law of Moses.
3.
(Law)
Governed by the rules of law as distinguished from the rules of equity;
as,
legal
estate;
legal
assets.
Bouvier.
Burrill.
Syn. – Lawful; constitutional; legitimate; licit; authorized. See
Lawful
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Legal

LE'GAL

,
Adj.
[L. legalis, from lex, legis, law.]
1.
According to law; in conformity with law; as a legal standard or test; a legal procedure.
2.
Lawful; permitted by law; as a legal trade. Anything is legal which the laws do not forbid.
3.
According to the law of works, as distinguished from free grace; or resting on works for salvation.
4.
Pertaining to law; created by law.
The exception must be confined to legal crimes.
So we use the phrase, criminal law.

Definition 2024

Legal

Legal

See also: legal, légal, and legâl

English

Proper noun

Legal

  1. A town in Alberta, Canada

legal

legal

See also: Legal, légal, and legâl

English

Adjective

legal ‎(comparative more legal, superlative most legal)

  1. Relating to the law or to lawyers.
    • 2013 June 8, “Obama goes troll-hunting”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 55:
      According to this saga of intellectual-property misanthropy, these creatures [patent trolls] roam the business world, buying up patents and then using them to demand extravagant payouts from companies they accuse of infringing them. Often, their victims pay up rather than face the costs of a legal battle.
    legal profession‎
  2. Having its basis in the law.
    legal precedent‎
  3. Being allowed or prescribed by law.
    • 2013 August 23, “Waking life”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8850:
      After 50 years, legal segregation is a distant memory, and race in America is not the unbridgeable chasm it once was. The country has a black president. The sort of comity that King evoked, in which the descendants of slaves and of slave owners “sit down together at the table of brotherhood”, can be found in many places, including the Deep South. The rate of marriage between blacks and whites is rising.
    legal motion‎
  4. (informal) Above the age of consent or the legal drinking age.

Antonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

legal ‎(uncountable)

  1. (informal) The legal department of a company.
    Legal wants this in writing.
  2. (US, Canada) Paper in sheets 8½ in × 14 in (215.9 mm × 355.6 mm).

Derived terms

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: winter · expect · nation · #964: legal · spread · enter · consider

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin lēgālis. Compare the inherited doublet lleial.

Adjective

legal m, f ‎(masculine and feminine plural legals)

  1. legal

Antonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Danish

Etymology

From Latin lēgālis ‎(“legal”), from lēx ‎(“law”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /leɡaːl/, [leˈɡ̊æːˀl]

Adjective

legal

  1. legal (something that conforms to or is according to law)
  2. legitimate (conforming to accepted rules)

Inflection

Inflection of legal
Positive Comparative Superlative
Common singular legal — —2
Neuter singular legalt — —2
Plural legale — —2
Definite attributive1 legale — —
1) When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite, the corresponding "indefinite" form is used.
2) The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Galician

Etymology

From Latin lēgālis.

Adjective

legal m, f (plural legais)

  1. legal (having its basis in the law)

Antonyms

Derived terms

See also

German

Etymology

From Latin lēgālis ‎(“legal”), from lēx ‎(“law”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [leːˈɡaːl]
  • Rhymes: -aːl

Adjective

legal ‎(not comparable)

  1. legal

Declension

Antonyms

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin lēgālis ‎(“legal”), from lēx ‎(“law”). Compare leal.

Pronunciation

Adjective

legal m, f ‎(plural legais, comparable)

  1. legal
  2. (Brazil, familiar) cool, nice, good

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see Citations:legal.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Romanian

Etymology

From French légal.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /leˈɡal/

Adjective

legal m, n ‎(feminine singular legală, masculine plural legali, feminine and neuter plural legale)

  1. legal, lawful

Declension

Synonyms

Antonyms

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin lēgālis, from lēx ‎(“law”). Compare leal.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /leˈɡal/

Adjective

legal m, f ‎(plural legales)

  1. legal

Antonyms

Derived terms

Swedish

Adjective

legal (not comparable)

  1. legal

Declension

Inflection of legal
Indefinite/attributive Positive Comparative Superlative2
Common singular legal — —
Neuter singular legalt — —
Plural legala — —
Definite Positive Comparative Superlative
Masculine singular1 legale — —
All legala — —
1) Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.
2) The indefinite superlative forms are only used in an attributive role.

Related terms

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /lɨˈɡæl/

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