1
as in spurious
born to a father and mother who are not married
despite being illegitimate, Alexander Hamilton rose to greatness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in illegal
contrary to or forbidden by law
an illegitimate use of campaign contributions for personal expenses
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in unreasonable
not using or following good reasoning
made several illegitimate inferences
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of illegitimate
Russian President Vladimir Putin claims Zelenskyy is illegitimate and has called for new elections in Ukraine.
—
Chris Massaro, FOXNews.com, 23 July 2025
To many early Americans, particularly those within the Washington and Adams administrations, self-government rendered popular protest illegitimate and obsolete.
—Time, 2 July 2025
Carlson said he's seen a lot of online comments on posts about his new record claiming the fish's weight seems impossible and bow fishing being illegitimate.
—Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 23 July 2025
However, in past few years, the European Union has focused its attention on regulating activities in freeports, especially after increasing instances of use of these freeports, including those in Switzerland and Geneva, for illegitimate activities.
—Priya Prakash Royal Esq. Ll.m. Mba Aep Tep, Forbes.com, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for illegitimate
Chris Massaro, FOXNews.com, 23 July 2025
To many early Americans, particularly those within the Washington and Adams administrations, self-government rendered popular protest illegitimate and obsolete.
—Time, 2 July 2025
Carlson said he's seen a lot of online comments on posts about his new record claiming the fish's weight seems impossible and bow fishing being illegitimate.
—Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 23 July 2025
However, in past few years, the European Union has focused its attention on regulating activities in freeports, especially after increasing instances of use of these freeports, including those in Switzerland and Geneva, for illegitimate activities.
—Priya Prakash Royal Esq. Ll.m. Mba Aep Tep, Forbes.com, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for illegitimate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illegitimate
Adjective
-
Though the book largely revolves around spurious media coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza, El Akkad’s great talent is in showing how, over the past few decades, corporate journalism and western powers have undermined our ability to confront global atrocities.—
Vulture Editors,
Vulture,
8 July 2025
-
Beyond payments, India's agricultural sector embraced QR codes to combat spurious seeds.—
Swati Tyagi,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2025
Adjective
-
Official fireworks shows took place over the city, and illegal pyrotechnics lit up the sky everywhere in between.—
Lisa Beebe,
Los Angeles Magazine,
5 July 2017
-
Louisville police say anything that goes into the air or explodes is illegal for average citizens.—
James Bruggers,
The Courier-Journal,
5 July 2017
Adjective
-
State of Ohio et al. v. NCAA (2024): A coalition of states challenged the NCAA’s remaining restrictions on transfers, arguing that the adjusted rule still imposed unreasonable restraint on athletes.—
Nick LoMaglio,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
-
That doesn’t seem like an unreasonable body count for someone who’s about to default on his mortgage — someone who’s already suffered the indignity of being forced to cancel his family’s Netflix account.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Scenes stretch on too long, Lynette’s misbegotten plans play out in predictable fashion, and even a handful of genuinely thrilling action sequences (like Lynette’s escape from that grimy garage, told through an eye-popping oner) can’t quite keep things ticking along.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
14 Aug. 2025
-
President Trump was right to withdraw from the Obama administration’s misbegotten project in 2018—even though the EU signatories remain pledged to the zombie agreement to this day.—
John R. Bolton,
The Atlantic,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
He was indicted on two charges, including conspiracy to transport undocumented immigrants and unlawful transportation of migrants without legal status.—
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán,
NPR,
25 Aug. 2025
-
There are widespread reports of extrajudicial killings, psychological intimidation, unlawful detentions, torture, child kidnappings and disappearances.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
24 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
On the irrational front, Cramer pointed to recent IPOs such as Circle, Figma and Bullish, that each saw explosive gains after their debuts.—
Ali McCadden,
CNBC,
14 Aug. 2025
-
But exactly the opposite needs to happen: the patient needs to enact her struggle in the room, to be messy, irrational, resentful, out of control.—
Leslie Jamison,
New Yorker,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The boxer, a son of legendary fighter Julio César Chávez, had a warrant for his arrest in Mexico in connection with allegedly dealing arms, distributing illicit drugs and having cartel ties.—
Darnell Mayberry,
New York Times,
20 Aug. 2025
-
In the first three-plus months of the new administration, Coast Guard personnel detained more than 860 aliens and stopped as much illicit cocaine as was interdicted at sea during fiscal 2024, Adm. Kevin E. Lunday told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security on May 14.—
Gidget Fuentes,
USA Today,
19 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The Amazon founder was previously married to Mackenzie Scott from 1993 to 2019, and the couple share three sons and an adopted daughter.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Mar. 2025
-
His adopted daughter, Sandra Correia Lopes, 12, weighs just 12 kilograms, or 26 pounds, and falls sick frequently.—
Sui-Lee Wee,
New York Times,
16 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Illegitimate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illegitimate. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share