legality

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

Lawfulness

Nouns

1. legality, legitimacy, legitimateness, legalization, constitutionalism, constitutionality, lawfulness, legal process, due process of law, Miranda rights.

2. legislation, legislature, law, code, codex, constitution, charter, enactment, statute, bill, canon, precept, ordinance, regulation; bylaw; decree, order; sanction, authority.

3. jurisprudence, codification, equity; common, civil, statute, or constitutional law; ecclesiastical or divine law, law of Moses, unwritten law; family law; military or maritime law; Uniform Code of Military Justice.

4. jurisdiction, administration, province, dominion, domain, bailiwick, magistracy, authority, police power, eminent domain. See permission.

Verbs

1. legalize, legitim[at]ize, validate, authorize, sanction; enact, ordain, decree, order, pass a law, legislate; codify, formulate, regulate.

2. administer, govern, rule; preside, judge, arbitrate.

Adjectives

1. legal, legitimate, according to law, vested, constitutional, chartered, legalized, lawful, valid, permitted, statutory; official, ex officio; legislative. Slang, legit; kosher.

2. jurisdictional, judicatory, judiciary, judicial, juridical; judging, judicious; forensic.

Adverbs — legally, legitimately, by law, in the eye of the law. Slang, on the square, on the up and up, on the level.

Quotations — Useless laws weaken the necessary laws (Montesquieu), Laws too gentle are seldom obeyed; too severe, seldom executed (Benjamin Franklin).

Antonyms, see illegality.

II

(Roget's IV) n.

Syn. legitimacy, lawfulness, authority, permissibility, validity, justice, defendability, status de jure, status before the law, status in court; see also right 1 , 2 .

III

(Roget's Thesaurus II) noun The state or quality of being within the law: lawfulness, legitimacy, legitimateness, licitness. See LAW.