Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “legality” come from?

Legality derives from English legal combined with the Latin suffix -alis, from Proto-Indo-European -it-, ultimately rooted in formations expressing state or condition.

legality (English): Lawfulness

Definitions

  1. Lawfulness

Ancestry of “legality”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1English-ityUsed to form a noun from an adjective;...
2Middle English-ite—
3Old French-ité-ity
4Latin-itās—
5Proto-Indo-European-teh₂tsUsed to form nouns representing state of being
6Proto-Indo-European-teh₂Used to form nouns representing state of being
7Proto-Indo-European-tósCreates verbal adjectives from verb stems

Words derived from “legality”

  • medicolegality
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tós →