legally

legally — adverb

1. acting or occurring in compliance with legal rules — doing what the law says you

1.adverbB2
Definition

acting or occurring in compliance with legal rules — doing what the law says you may or must do, rather than what it forbids.

Example

Tunde legally registered his new company with the city council last month.

legally + verb of compliance (register a business)

The factory must legally treat all waste water before releasing it into the river.

Common collocations
  • act legally
  • operate legally
  • register legally
  • park legally
  • legally hire
  • legally vote
Synonyms
  • lawfully

    identical in meaning but slightly more formal; common in official documents

  • legitimately

    broader meaning — can also describe something that is morally or logically acceptable, not just legal

Antonyms
  • illegally

    direct opposite; describes actions that break the law

  • unlawfully

    formal synonym of 'illegally', used especially in legal writing

Usage Note

Modifies verbs describing actions that are subject to legal rules. The focus is on whether the action itself follows the law. Common verb partners: 'act,' 'operate,' 'register,' 'park,' 'hire,' 'vote.'

Common Mistakes

She legally drove to work every day.
She drove to work within the speed limit, so she was driving legally.
'Legally' with a bare action verb is vague; add context showing compliance with a specific legal rule.

2. when considered or judged according to the system of law, regardless of whether

2.adverbB2
Definition

when considered or judged according to the system of law, regardless of whether something is morally right, practically fair, or socially acceptable in other ways.

Example

Legally, the old contract was still binding even though both sides wanted to change it.

sentence-initial Legally, + contrast clause

João is legally an adult at age eighteen even if he still lives with his parents.

legally + adjective (is an adult at a certain age)

Common collocations
  • legally binding
  • legally valid
  • legally responsible
  • legally required
  • legally entitled
  • legally permissible
  • legally obligated
  • legally married
  • legally enforceable
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • morally

    contrasts with 'legally' to show the difference between what the law says and what is right

  • in practice

    contrasts the legal principle with how things actually work in real life

Usage Note

This sense often appears in contrastive contexts, where the legal position differs from a moral, practical, or emotional perspective. Common with adjectives describing legal status: 'binding,' 'valid,' 'responsible,' 'required,' 'entitled,' 'permissible,' 'obligated,' 'married.'

Common Mistakes

He is legally the father but he does not act like one.' (fine — this usage IS sense 2)
The sentence is actually correct. The error is confusing sense 2 for sense 1: 'legally the father' means 'from the law's perspective, he is the father,' not 'he fulfills his fatherly duties by following the law.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

'Lawfully' is the closest synonym to 'legally' in sense 1, but it appears more often in formal legal writing and courtroom language — a judge rules that evidence was 'lawfully obtained.' 'Legitimately' is broader: it can refer to something that is morally, logically, or socially acceptable, not just legally compliant. For example, you can 'legitimately complain' about bad service even when no law is involved. 'By the book' is an informal idiom that means following rules strictly, but those rules may be company policy or procedure rather than actual law. In practice: 'The contractor completed the work legally (within the law) but did not follow the building specifications by the book (per the contract's procedures).'

lawfullylegitimatelyby the book ↗

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

From Latin 'legalis' meaning 'pertaining to the law,' via French 'légal' and Middle English, with the '-ly' suffix forming an adverb.