legend
Americannoun
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legends
plural
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a nonhistorical or unverifiable story handed down by tradition from earlier times and popularly accepted as historical.
- Antonyms:
- fact
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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.
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an inscription, especially on a coat of arms, on a monument, under a picture, or the like.
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a table on a map, chart, or the like, listing and explaining the symbols used.
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Numismatics. inscription.
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a collection of stories about an admirable person.
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a person who is the center of such stories.
She became a legend in her own lifetime.
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Archaic. a story of the life of a saint, especially one stressing the miraculous or unrecorded deeds of the saint.
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Obsolete. a collection of such stories or stories like them.
noun
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a popular story handed down from earlier times whose truth has not been ascertained
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a group of such stories
the Arthurian legend
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a modern story that has taken on the characteristics of a traditional legendary tale
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a person whose fame or notoriety makes him a source of exaggerated or romanticized tales or exploits
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an inscription or title, as on a coin or beneath a coat of arms
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explanatory matter accompanying a table, map, chart, etc
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a story of the life of a saint
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a collection of such stories
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Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of legend
First recorded in 1300–50; 1900–05 legend for def. 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
Explanation
A legend is a larger-than-life story that gets passed down from one generation to the next — like the legends of Beowulf, Robin Hood, or even Big Foot. Legend comes from the Latin legere, "to read." The Latin word was originally limited to written stories, but in English, legend lost that limitation. Often a legend lives on in the stories that people tell each other. A person can be a legend, too. Anne Frank is a legend for keeping a diary of hidden life in war time, and a less famous person, like a long-serving local teacher, can be a legend to neighborhood kids.
Vocabulary lists containing legend
Beowulf vocabulary
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Reading: Informational - Middle School
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Academy Awards, List 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The tennis legend - a boyhood Real fan who holds member's number 67,778 - included a photo of himself as a child in a club kit in his response to the news.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday received Bob Dylan in the Vatican at an audience for which the US folk music legend wore a black hooded sweater.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
Crow also discussed the legacy of country music legend Dolly Parton - whose family tree has been traced to Machynlleth in Powys.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
But the legend of Minshew is alive and well.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
And when they call him my dad and not Lawless, the underground rap legend, it’s like they’re reminding me that I’m his and he’s mine.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
In a statement announcing the move, external, the club said Nadal was "one of the greatest legends in the history of sport and one of the most admired and recognised Spanish athletes in the world".
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
Chris Campbell lives in Girvan and is interested in the area's myths and legends.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Intocable are just such legends, and they truly represent the best of both Texas and Mexico.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
“Having a song with the legends of Intocable is such a thrill for me,” said Musgraves in a press release on Tuesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
‘Halflings! But they are only a little people in old songs and children’s tales out of the North. Do we walk in legends or on the green earth in the daylight?’
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
