legitimized
UK[lɪˈdʒɪtɪmaɪzd]US[lɪˈdʒɪtɪmaɪzd]
v
made something legal or acceptable according to established rules or standards.
v
gave official authority or validity to something.
Morpheme Breakdown
legit
im
ize
d
legit
law
im
adjective suffix
ize
verb suffix
d
past tense suffix
Etymology
the word 'legitimized' is built upon the core latin root 'legit-', derived from 'lex' (law). the latin adjective 'legitimus' meant 'lawful' or 'in accordance with the law'. this entered english via old french as 'legitime'. the english formative process added the verb-forming suffix '-ize', meaning 'to make', to create 'legitimize', signifying 'to make lawful'. the final '-d' marks the past tense or participle form. thus, the journey from the concrete concept of 'law' to the abstract process of 'making something valid or acceptable' is captured in this morphological construction.
Analysis
Structure: legit (law) + im (adjective suffix) + ize (verb suffix) + d (past tense suffix)
legit (from latin 'legitimus', meaning lawful, from 'lex' meaning law); im (latin adjectival suffix '-imus', forming superlatives or related adjectives); ize (greek-derived english verb-forming suffix '-ize', meaning to make or become); d (english inflectional suffix for past tense and past participle).
Examples
the new treaty legitimized the borders established after the conflict.
widespread public acceptance helped to legitimize the government's reforms.
his success in the field legitimized his unconventional methods.