legalese
/ˌli.ɡəˈliz/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.13 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Technical jargon common in the legal profession; the argot of lawyers.
Derogatory; Informal; Uncountable
noun
Wordy, ostentatious talk or writing that resembles legal writing, especially when confusing to laypeople; bureaucratese; officialese.
Derogatory; Informal; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "It is also his considered opinion that a condition precedent to any legislative action is that those best qualified to pronounce on the merits of a popular demand examine it in all its aspects. That is good Menzian legalese, as pompous as parody permits."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *leǵ- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *lḗǵs? Proto-Indo-European *legʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *lḗgʰs? Proto-Italic *lēks Latin lex Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin lēgālislbor. English legal Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-iskbor. Late Latin -iscus ▲ Vulgar Latin -iscus Latin -ēnsis Old French -eisbor. Middle English -eys English -ese English legalese From legal + -ese.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌli.ɡəˈliz/
- British English: /ˌliː.ɡəˈliːz/
Usage
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Law.