LEGEND Definition & Meaning

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legend

[ lej-uhnd ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a nonhistorical or unverifiable story handed down by tradition from earlier times and popularly accepted as historical.
Antonyms:
the body of stories of this kind, especially as they relate to a particular people, group, or clan:
the winning of the West in American legend.
an inscription, especially on a coat of arms, on a monument, under a picture, or the like.
a table on a map, chart, or the like, listing and explaining the symbols used. Compare key ¹( def 8 ).
Numismatics. inscription ( def 8 ).
a collection of stories about an admirable person.
a person who is the center of such stories:
She became a legend in her own lifetime.
Archaic. a story of the life of a saint, especially one stressing the miraculous or unrecorded deeds of the saint.
Obsolete. a collection of such stories or stories like them.

legend

/ ˈ��ɛ��ə�Ի� /

noun

a popular story handed down from earlier times whose truth has not been ascertained
a group of such stories
the Arthurian legend
a modern story that has taken on the characteristics of a traditional legendary tale
a person whose fame or notoriety makes him a source of exaggerated or romanticized tales or exploits
an inscription or title, as on a coin or beneath a coat of arms
explanatory matter accompanying a table, map, chart, etc
1. a story of the life of a saint
2. a collection of such stories

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Derived Forms

ˈ��𲵱�Ի��, noun

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Other 51�Թ� Forms

��·��ĲԻ� noun adjective

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of legend¹

First recorded in 1300–50; 1900–05 legend fordef 4; Middle English legende “written account of a saint's life,” from Medieval Latin legenda literally, “(lesson) to be read,” noun use of feminine of Latin legendus, gerund of legere “to read”; so called because appointed to be read on respective saints' days

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of legend¹

C14 (in the sense: a saint's life or a collection of saints' lives): from Medieval Latin legenda passages to be read, from Latin legere to read

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Synonym Study

Legend, fable, myth refer to fictitious stories, usually handed down by tradition (although some fables are modern). Legend, originally denoting a story concerning the life of a saint, is applied to any fictitious story, sometimes involving the supernatural, and usually concerned with a real person, place, or other subject: the legend of the Holy Grail. A fable is specifically a fictitious story (often with animals or inanimate things as speakers or actors) designed to teach a moral: a fable about industrious bees. A myth is one of a class of stories, usually concerning gods, semidivine heroes, etc., current since primitive times, the purpose of which is to attempt to explain some belief or natural phenomenon: the Greek myth about Demeter.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

They only gain a semblance of self-evident truth through age and familiarity, as the legend of John Frum illustrates.

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It's a popular sneaker line by a large American brand, created four decades ago for homegrown basketball legend Michael Jordan.

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A plaque has been unveiled in Manchester honouring musician Johnny Marr with the title of "record store legend".

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One of the owners, Paul Humphreys, was born on same day as Grand National legend Red Rum.

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Thirty years after the pop legend’s death, why do Latinos continue to crave this story?

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